Country agriculture profile · Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan
Pakistan
Pakistan is a large, irrigation-dependent agricultural producer whose farming is concentrated in the fertile Indus Basin. It is a major producer of wheat — the staple food crop — along with the cotton that anchors its textile industry, rice (including premium basmati), and sugarcane, and it sustains a very large smallholder dairy sector based on cattle and water buffalo. Output relies almost entirely on canal and groundwater irrigation across a predominantly arid landscape, making water availability the central constraint on production.
Farming systems (stable overview)
Climate zones
- Arid and semi-arid (dominant)
- Hyper-arid deserts (Thar and Cholistan)
- Temperate highland (northern mountains)
- Monsoon-influenced eastern margins
Agroecological zones
- Indus Basin irrigated plains of Punjab and Sindh
- Rainfed (barani) uplands of the northwest
- Mountainous north
- Arid rangelands of Balochistan
Dominant crop systems
- Canal-irrigated wheat, cotton, rice (including basmati), and sugarcane across the Indus Basin
- Rainfed (barani) wheat and pulses on the uplands
- Orchards and horticulture
- Cropping split between kharif (summer) and rabi (winter) seasons
Major livestock systems
- Smallholder and pastoral cattle and water buffalo for milk (a very large dairy sector)
- Large goat and sheep flocks for meat
- Expanding commercial poultry
Irrigation: Agriculture depends overwhelmingly on the Indus Basin Irrigation System — among the largest contiguous canal networks on earth — leaving output highly sensitive to river flows, waterlogging, and salinity.
Latest verified data
Each value is the most recent available observation, shown with its own year and unit. Figures are periodically revised — treat them as dated, sourced statistics, not evergreen facts.
| Indicator | Value | Unit | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Agricultural land | 46.69 | % of land area | 2023 |
| Arable land | 39.25 | % of land area | 2023 |
| Cereal yield | 3,634 | kg per hectare | 2023 |
| Cereal production | 53,188,016 | metric tons | 2023 |
| Livestock production index | 125.3 | index (2014–2016 = 100) | 2022 |
| Agriculture value added | 23.73 | % of GDP | 2024 |
| Employment in agriculture(est.) | 36.54 | % of total employment | 2024 |
| Irrigated agricultural land | 54.17 | % of agricultural land | 2023 |
Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12
Cereal yield over time
Show data table
| Year | kg per hectare |
|---|---|
| 2012 | 2,862.6 |
| 2013 | 3,001.3 |
| 2014 | 3,001.2 |
| 2015 | 2,942.4 |
| 2016 | 3,020.7 |
| 2017 | 3,180.4 |
| 2018 | 3,149 |
| 2019 | 3,160.6 |
| 2020 | 3,353.4 |
| 2021 | 3,489.4 |
| 2022 | 3,463 |
| 2023 | 3,634 |
Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12
Derived indicator
Arable land as a share of agricultural land: 84.1 % of agricultural land (2023)
Derived value — formula arable-share-of-agricultural-land v1.0.0 (calc v1). Inputs: AG.LND.ARBL.ZS (39.3) ÷ AG.LND.AGRI.ZS (46.7). A derived ratio, not an observed statistic. Sensitive to rounding and to differing revision cycles of the two source series; omit rather than extrapolate when a common year is unavailable.
Documented crops & livestock
Agricultural institutions
- Pakistan Agricultural Research Council (PARC) — Apex federal body coordinating national agricultural research and its institute network.
- Ministry of National Food Security and Research — Federal ministry responsible for food security, agricultural policy, and coordination.
Data coverage & limitations
Covered by the World Bank WDI snapshots for land, production, yield, economy, inputs, and environment indicators.
- Statistics are dated, versioned, and periodically revised; single-year figures should not be read as a fixed baseline.
- National definitions of agricultural land, holdings, crop years, and commodities differ from those used by other countries, limiting direct comparison.
- The World Bank classifies Pakistan in its “Middle East, North Africa, Afghanistan & Pakistan” region rather than South Asia; this is an administrative grouping, whereas Pakistan is geographically part of South Asia.
- Production is exceptionally sensitive to Indus water availability, waterlogging, and salinity, and is exposed to recurrent flood and drought shocks.
Sources
This article draws on the following authoritative sources. See our sources & methodology for how they are selected.
- Authoritative
Cited for: Agricultural statistics (WDI)
- Type:
- Intergovernmental organization
- Jurisdiction:
- Global
- Accessed:
- 2026-07-12
- [2]FAO — Food and Agriculture Organization (opens in a new tab)Authoritative
Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)
Cited for: Production, land-use, and commodity context
- Type:
- Intergovernmental organization
- Jurisdiction:
- Global
- Accessed:
- 2026-07-12