The State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) held a meeting of the Agricultural Credit Advisory Committee (ACAC) in Karachi to review agricultural credit performance and discuss strategies to strengthen inclusive and resilient financing in the sector. SBP Governor Jameel Ahmad highlighted that Pakistan’s economy has regained macroeconomic stability, with real GDP growth reaching 3.7 percent in the first quarter of FY26 and full-year growth projected between 3.75 and 4.75 percent. Headline inflation moderated to 5.8 percent by January 2026, allowing monetary policy to support growth while maintaining price stability.
Governor Ahmad emphasized the importance of agriculture for enhancing farm productivity, supporting rural livelihoods, and ensuring food security. He noted that agricultural credit disbursements reached a record Rs. 2,577 billion in FY25, a 16 percent increase from the previous year, and that Rs. 1,412 billion has already been disbursed in the first half of FY26, with 2.97 million borrowers recorded. To expand outreach, particularly among small farmers in underserved regions, he urged banks to leverage SBP initiatives, including the Risk Coverage Scheme for Small Farmers and Underserved Areas, and Zarkheze, SBP’s digital agricultural lending platform.
Zarkheze enables digital onboarding of farmers, standardized credit assessment, integration with land and crop information, and end-to-end traceability of loans. The platform ensures financing is used for quality agricultural inputs through an integrated vendor network. Governor Ahmad stressed that Zarkheze must be scaled up as a core delivery channel to make small-ticket lending commercially viable and extend financial access beyond high-volume regions. Banks were urged to process applications efficiently, strengthen internal ownership, and develop the vendor ecosystem to provide certified inputs and embedded advisory services.
The ACAC meeting also focused on enhancing crop insurance under the upgraded CLIS+ framework, supported by the ADB-funded Pakistan Insurance Transformation Program. The scheme aims to expand coverage, improve risk-sharing through an insurance consortium, implement technology-based calamity assessment, and provide loss-of-income support. The ADB Solidarity Fund will help extend coverage to non-borrowing farmers and develop a National Insurance Policy for Agriculture.
Further discussions included scaling up Electronic Warehouse Receipt Financing (EWRF) to improve post-harvest liquidity, reduce distress sales, and strengthen market linkages. The committee emphasized expanding accredited warehousing and increasing bank participation in EWR-based financing.
Governor Ahmad outlined three priorities for the banking sector: expanding borrower delivery through microfinance and small-ticket products, promoting inclusion by financing small and subsistence farmers with productivity-enhancing credit, and achieving geographical diversification to underserved areas. He concluded by urging banks to expand the agricultural borrower base, strengthen small farmer inclusion, and scale up digital delivery channels such as Zarkheze to support sustainable agricultural growth. The ACAC continues to serve as a strategic platform under SBP’s leadership, bringing together financial institutions and stakeholders to advance agricultural finance, productivity, and economic resilience.
