In a rare meeting between high-level policy analysts from both India and Pakistan, experts from across South Asia gathered in Islamabad this past September for a five-day workshop to discuss ways to enhance agricultural markets and trade, as the region tries to move from self-sufficiency to high-value export agriculture.

“South Asia’s strategy for rising to the challenge of globalization centers on agriculture,” said Ashok Gulati, director of Markets,Trade, and Institutions at IFPRI. “To become globally competitive, the region needs basic reforms in the agricultural sector to improve production, marketing, and distribution.”

Over seventy policy analysts, researchers, and university professors from Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Pakistan, and Sri Lanka attended the workshop, which IFPRI organized in collaboration with Innovative Development Strategies (IDS) and the University of Agriculture in Faisalabad, as part of its South Asia Initiative.A similar workshop was held in Bangladesh in March.

The workshop was designed to enhance the ability of participants to analyze the outcomes and impact of domestic market reforms. Using case studies from their own countries, participants examined both output markets, such as those for foodgrains, and input markets, such as those for seeds and irrigation. Participants also discussed options for phasing out fertilizer subsidies and reforming power subsidies.

"Through analysis and dialogue, South Asia’s policymakers and researchers can help build each other’s capacity and make the region a formidable economic force," said Suresh Babu, IFPRI senior research fellow and senior training adviser.

A key conclusion of the workshop, funded by the Asian Development Bank, was that unless South Asian countries implement appropriate domestic reforms, they will not be able to reap the full benefits of globalization, even if they liberalize their food and agricultural sectors for trade purposes.

"If South Asian countries are to fully participate in international markets, their agriculture sectors need to be competitive," said Bashir Ahmad, vice chancellor of the University of Agriculture, Faisalabad. "And for that to happen, domestic market reforms need to be at the top of the region’s agenda."