PAKISTAN'S FARM SECTOR GETS READY FOR TOMORROW

Higher education courses in agriculture require an overhaul to keep pace with a changing world, not least increasing numbers of women students

By Farhan Bokharif, The Financial Times, March 2, 2005

Suhail Malik, a Pakistani economist and professor at the country's leading
agriculture university in Faisalabad, considers the evolving character of
the average class over the past decade.

"The biggest change," he says "is the number of women aspiring to a degree
in agriculture.

"In 1993, there was only one woman in the class. She was a colleague who
went along to see the university. The students were all men. Today, more
than half the class are women."

Dr Malik believes the increasing number of women venturing on a career
dominated by men in an Islamic country suggests the agricultural workforce
is undergoing a sea-change.

He believes businesses aiming to employ trained staff with a Bachelor of
Science in agriculture for industrial ventures such as processing and
packaging commodities for export, now have a chance to plan ahead.

Dr Malik's view is a significant leap of faith in a country where
agriculture remains central to the economy, but graduates in agriculture
have low wages and few chances for career development.

The best graduates from Pakistani high schools end up in careers such as
medicine, engineering, business and, in recent years, information
technology.

This contrasts with the fundamental fact that more than two-thirds of
Pakistan's 150m people rely directly or indirectly on agricultural incomes
and more than half of unskilled labourers work on the land.

On average, new graduates with a degree in agriculture receive starting
monthly salaries of Rps10,000 - sharply below wages for the top MBAs which
could be four times higher. Meanwhile, engineers receive twice as much,
with doctors not far behind.

Dr Malik believes that part of the problem is that "we haven't updated our
universities to provide the skills needed today. Large farm owners have
little use for graduates who cannot tackle real-life challenges."

The government says it recognises the need to revamp the syllabus and has
begun modernising the four main agricultural universities. Additional
funds have been provided to other institutions, such as Pakistan's oldest
veterinary university in Lahore, as well as other colleges where
agriculture is taught.

Suhail Naqvi, head of human resource development at the government's
higher agricultural commission, says: "We are dedicated to producing
top-quality agricultural graduates. This is an important focus for us, as
it is vital for our economy." The commission is the main body responsible
for overseeing higher educational reforms.

Faculty members and students at agricultural universities report greater
availability of funds from the government for bright students to seek
higher degrees abroad.

But some observers warn that better career prospects will come only if
changes at college and university level are accompanied by long overdue
reforms in the agriculture sector.

"How do you meet the challenge of graduates being equipped with an
education that is largely bookish? You make certain that the government's
agricultural departments are up-to-speed on research and application in
the field" says Ameer Muhammad, a widely respected agricultural scientist
and former chairman of the Pakistan Agricultural Research Council, the top
government agency responsible for research in agriculture.

In one example of the disconnect between universities and practical
experience on farms, Dr Muhammad cites the case when he decided as
vice-chancellor of a Pakistani agricultural university to have every
student spend their last semester working on a farm before graduation.

"That scheme was never followed through. Without experience, graduates
cannot compete in the open market and get the best career opportunities."

Dr Naqvi says that the right mix of academic knowledge with real life
practical skills is a top priority for the higher education commission.

Dr Malik adds that the larger number of women graduates coming out of
agricultural universities is creating the basis for a growing number of
non-governmental organisations to begin hiring employees for projects
related to women.

But opinion on agricultural degrees is divided, both among farmers and
among prospective students. Across some of Pakistan's most fertile
agricultural land and among some of the country's prosperous farmers, its
difficult to find landowners seeking out people with a degree in
agriculture.

The lack of interest stems from outdated practices on farms and the belief
that agricultural graduates do not offer adequate returns even for the
modest wages they are paid.

"If I hired an illiterate labourer to run my farm for a quarter of what I
pay a graduate, I would still have to be convinced that my investment
would give me a pay-back," says Malik Fakhar Faisal, a farm owner in
central Punjab who has a 500-acre rice plantation.

"It's not that I could not afford the expense of hiring somebody with a
degree. It's just that I have to be convinced, this is the right thing to
do."

Aslam Baloch, a young high school graduate with a certificate in sciences
in the city of Sheikhupura, a large centre of agriculture in the Punjab,
says he intends to take his exams again next year with the aim of joining
a medical school. "I have grades that could take me to an agricultural
programme. But what am I going to do with a degree in agriculture," he
asks.

Dr Malik says: "Nobody can ignore the fact that Pakistan has enough land
and resources to be self-sufficient, but we don't grow enough crops for
ourselves," he says.

"Sooner or later, somebody has to change this situation, which must mean
significantly improved career prospects."