AgricultureID

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.

Stable overview + dated statisticsUpdated: 2026-07-12

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.

Latest available agricultural indicators, with year and unit
IndicatorValueUnitYear
Agricultural land46.69% of land area2023
Arable land39.25% of land area2023
Cereal yield3,634kg per hectare2023
Cereal production53,188,016metric tons2023
Livestock production index125.3index (2014–2016 = 100)2022
Agriculture value added23.73% of GDP2024
Employment in agriculture(est.)36.54% of total employment2024
Irrigated agricultural land54.17% of agricultural land2023

Source: World Bank Open Data (World Development Indicators) (opens in a new tab) · dataset version 2026-07-01 · retrieved 2026-07-12

Commodity market data

5,481 official observations across 54 commodities. Figures are shown on each commodity page with the unit, status and release its source published.

Commodities with official market series for this country
CommodityMetrics recorded
AlmondsArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
AvocadosImports, Import value
BananasArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Barley GrainArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Imports, Index value, Export value, Import value
Black PeppercornsExports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Buckwheat GrainExports, Export value
Cashew NutsImports, Import value
ChickpeasArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Cocoa BeansImports
Cotton LintProduction, Beginning stocks, Ending stocks, Exports, Imports, Index value, Export value, Import value
CottonseedProduction, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Index value, Export value
CucumbersArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
DatesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Dried ChilliesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Dried Tobacco LeafArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Dry BeansArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Imports, Import value
Dry Bulb OnionsArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Dry PeasArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Imports, Import value
FlaxseedArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Imports, Import value
Fresh ApplesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Fresh OrangesIndex value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Fresh PineapplesImports, Import value
Fresh StrawberriesExports, Export value
Fresh TomatoesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Green CoffeeImports, Import value
GroundnutsArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Imports, Index value, Exports, Export value, Import value
HazelnutsImports, Import value
Head CabbageArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Hen EggsProduction, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Jute FibreArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
LentilsArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Imports, Import value
Maize GrainArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Feed use, Imports, Index value, Export value, Import value
Milled RiceBeginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Imports, Export value, Import value
Millet GrainArea harvested, Production, Yield, Domestic use, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Oat GrainExports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Pigeon PeasArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value
PistachiosArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
RapeseedArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Imports, Index value, Import value
Raw Cow MilkProduction, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Raw WoolProduction, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Rice PaddyArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Safflower SeedArea harvested, Production, Index value, Imports, Import value
Sesame SeedArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Sorghum GrainArea harvested, Production, Yield, Domestic use, Feed use, Imports, Index value, Import value
SoybeansArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Imports, Index value, Export value, Import value
Sugar BeetArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value
SugarcaneArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Producer price, Exports, Export value
Sunflower SeedArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Imports, Index value, Export value, Import value
Sweet PotatoesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value
Tea LeafExports, Export value, Imports, Import value
WalnutsArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Ware PotatoesArea harvested, Production, Yield, Index value, Exports, Export value, Imports, Import value
Wheat GrainArea harvested, Production, Yield, Beginning stocks, Domestic use, Ending stocks, Exports, Feed use, Imports, Index value, Producer price, Export value, Import value
YamsImports, Import value

How these figures are recorded

Cereal yield over time

201220182023
Pakistan — Cereal yield (kg per hectare). Bars start at zero.
Show data table
Pakistan — Cereal yield in kg per hectare by year
Yearkg per hectare
20122,862.6
20133,001.3
20143,001.2
20152,942.4
20163,020.7
20173,180.4
20183,149
20193,160.6
20203,353.4
20213,489.4
20223,463
20233,634

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.

Agricultural authorities

Official public bodies verified against government sources. AgricultureID is independent and not affiliated with them.

All agricultural authorities

Data coverage & limitations

Covered by the World Bank WDI snapshots for land, production, yield, economy, inputs, and environment indicators.

What AgricultureID has indexed for Pakistan
LayerStatusWhat is held
Agricultural authoritiesCovered1 record
Official registriesNot yet indexed—
Compliance requirementsNot yet indexed—
Support programmesNot yet indexed—
Biosecurity listingsNot yet indexed—
Variety registrationsNot yet indexed—
Input authorisationsNot yet indexed—
Extension resourcesNot yet indexed—
Market statisticsCovered375 records
Soil survey observationsNot yet indexed—
Border requirementsNot yet indexed—
Farm economics figuresNot yet indexed—
Climate, drought and water valuesCovered54 records

This page describes what AgricultureID has indexed, not what exists. A layer shown as not yet indexed means nobody has looked, and never that the thing is absent in that country. How coverage is worked out.

  • 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.

  1. [1]World Bank Open Data — World Development Indicators (opens in a new tab)

    World Bank

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Agricultural statistics (WDI)

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12
  2. [2]FAO — Food and Agriculture Organization (opens in a new tab)

    Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)

    Authoritative

    Cited for: Production, land-use, and commodity context

    Type:
    Intergovernmental organization
    Jurisdiction:
    Global
    Accessed:
    2026-07-12