Category | Grain Drain

Common Sense Approaches to A ‘Food Secure’ Pakistan

An interesting advertisement appeared in the national press in mid-May 2008, seeking tenders for food supply in various prisons in Sindh. The benchmark was three meals of 150 grams wheat flour each on an average. Immediately one thought of the wheat crisis, as well as the food crisis, and the mind began to calculate. Extrapolating […]

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Pakistan’s CSR Mentality Change

Since arriving in Karachi nine months ago, I have heard widespread criticism of CSR in Pakistan for being focused on philanthropy as opposed to sustainable business practices. Such criticism results in calls for a change in mindset in relation to CSR. However, on their own these calls will have little effect. In reflecting on my […]

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A Diary of A Food Volunteer

May 14, 2000. A bus load of volunteers and myself head to the Thar desert. We set up a relief collection point in Indus Valley School, and plan to participate in the distribution of the relief goods. Our leaders in this campaign are the Raasta Development Consultants’ people. We are met by the staff of […]

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Commodity Crises: A Liberal Capitalist Perspective

In 1997, Vietnam, a predominantly agricultural country where 80 percent of the population is rural, lifted the internal and external trade restrictions on rice: its main staple. 95 percent of urban households are net buyers of rice and a North-South divide exists in terms of rice production. The incidence of poverty in the rural areas, […]

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