The Agriculture Research sub-component, implemented by the Department of Agriculture’s Directorate of Research, addresses the shortage of quality potato seed in Gilgit-Baltistan through a farmer- and contract-centred basic seed production programme. It also strengthens local capacity for seed certification and product certification for export.
Main inputs
- Full rehabilitation of three tissue-culture laboratories (greenhouses and screen houses), with capacity to support production of 25,000 tons of seed potato in Gilgit-Baltistan.
- Equipment, machinery, chemicals and baseline inputs (imported basic potato seed, fertilizer, pesticides), plus a revolving fund for sustainable seed production.
- Agreements between potato seed and table-potato producer groups and private-sector purchasers, and supply of basic and certified seed according to producers’ business plans.
- Contract growing with farmers for seed multiplication, including farmer training.
- Seed stores in key production areas and adaptive research trials to select optimal areas for seed and table potato.
- Directorate capacity building, including support to the seed certification office in Gilgit and daily-wage workers for the tissue-culture laboratories.
How it is organized
The Directorate of Research manages the tissue-culture laboratories, farmer training and monitoring for potato seed multiplication, linkages with private and public seed buyers, promotion of valley-based storage and sorting, and introduction of improved vegetable varieties. Seed-certification capacity is developed at Gilgit and Skardu offices of the Federal Seed Certification Department, with incremental staff as required under ETI-GB.