TEHRAN – Iran and Pakistan signed two agreements on agricultural cooperation, focusing on the creation of a joint agriculture committee and collaboration in plant protection and quarantine.

The signing ceremony took place in Tehran with Iran’s Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh and Pakistan’s Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain in attendance.

Nouri said the agreements were the outcome of a three-day visit by a Pakistani delegation and joint meetings between the two sides.

One memorandum of understanding establishes the first Iran-Pakistan Joint Agriculture Committee, while the other outlines cooperation on plant health and quarantine measures.

Nouri said the two countries, given their agricultural capacities and food security needs, have a strong basis for expanding cooperation.

The minister added that the initiative follows up on Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian’s recent trip to Pakistan, where both sides agreed to pursue food security and agricultural trade more actively.

He said the deals are aimed at removing barriers in exports and imports of key commodities.

Nouri predicted that bilateral trade in food and essential goods, currently about $1.3 billion a year, could grow to $3.0 billion within two years.

He said Pakistan has committed to sourcing part of its food and agricultural needs from Iran, while Tehran will import essential goods from Pakistan. He added that barter trade could help accelerate the exchange.

Pakistan’s food security minister Hussain said the agreements were part of instructions from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif to advance commitments made during Pezeshkian’s visit to Islamabad.

He confirmed that two cooperation documents, covering both technical and broader agricultural areas, had been finalized.

Hussain stressed that Islamabad is ready to cooperate in meeting agricultural and food requirements of both countries.

He also invited Nouri to visit Pakistan in the near future.

EF/MA

Photo: Iran’s Agriculture Minister Gholamreza Nouri Ghezeljeh (R)and Pakistan’s Minister for National Food Security Rana Tanveer Hussain sign cooperation agreements in Tehran.