Summary The new policy sets out a roadmap to expand olive production, processing, quality control, branding and marketing
ISLAMABAD (APP) - Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Monday formally launched Pakistan’s National Olive Value Chain Policy, describing the country’s growing olive sector as a rare success story capable of transforming national agriculture and easing the pressure of a multi-billion-dollar edible oil import bill.
Addressing farmers, growers, diplomats and young entrepreneurs at a ceremony here organised in collaboration with the Italian government, the prime minister said Pakistan currently spends around four billion dollars annually importing crude edible oil, a burden – he noted the country could significantly reduce by expanding domestic olive cultivation.
“Olive oil is among the healthiest fruits available, and if we produce it ourselves, even saving a fraction of that import bill would be an enormous service to the nation,” the prime minister said, adding that with sustained effort Pakistan could become self-sufficient in edible oil within a few years.
PM Shehbaz Sharif paid tribute to farmers who pioneered olive cultivation despite early scepticism from their own families and communities, singling out growers from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa whose orchards have since won international awards in New York, London and Dubai.
He said their perseverance proved that “if you are determined and have passion in your heart, such revolutions can be brought about,” and congratulated provincial governments for supporting farmers through the process.
The prime minister also thanked Italy for decades of cooperation with Pakistan, recalling the two countries’ seven-decade partnership spanning archaeology, agriculture, trade and industry.
He announced that Pakistan would fund the training of 100 young agriculture graduates in Italy, covering olive cultivation, processing and marketing, so they can return to strengthen the local value chain.
He said his government remained committed to expanding edible oil crops more broadly, including palm and sunflower cultivation, alongside the olive initiative, calling on farmers and officials to keep working together in the field rather than “only on paper.”
The new policy sets out a roadmap to expand olive production, processing, quality control, branding and marketing, positioning Pakistan as a regional hub for olive oil in South, Central and Eastern Asia.
