Reguengos de Monsaraz, Evora, Portugal, July 2, 2026 (Lusa) – The Minister for Agriculture, José Manuel Fernandes, has said that Portugal is keen to increase exports to Pakistan, which “is a major market”, particularly for the agri-food sector.
“Pakistan has a population of around 255 million. It is also an important market for us, although at present it [is] almost negligible” in terms of Portuguese exports, emphasised José Manuel Fernandes, speaking to the Lusa news agency.
Currently, according to the minister, who was speaking to the Lusa news agency on Wednesday during a visit to Esporão, an Alentejo-based producer of wines and olive oils, Portugal sells “around €4 million a year to Pakistan in terms of agriculture, fisheries and forestry – which is, in essence, close to zero”, he admitted.
And Portuguese imports from that country “amount to around €15 million a year”, added the Minister for Agriculture and the Sea, who made this visit to Esporão accompanied by Pakistan’s Minister for National Food Security and Research, Rana Tanveer Hussain.
“We therefore have a large market here that we can and must strengthen, through a partnership that must be beneficial to both sides,” he emphasised.
The two countries have a relationship that marked its 75th anniversary last year, recalled José Manuel Fernandes, noting that, despite these years of agreements, “what should be, all things considered, an economic gain is still very much in its early stages”, from which Portugal does not exclude “any sector”.
“Our main objective is to increase exports. We need to reduce our trade deficit, and one way of doing this is by increasing exports”, he stated.
And products such as olive oil, which is of “exceptional quality” in the Alentejo and across the country, are among those that could find a niche market in Pakistan, which has now joined the International Olive Council, of which Portugal is a founding member.
“This is proof that Portugal, whilst not a large country in terms of area or population, manages to be the world’s sixth-largest producer of olive oil, thanks also to investments in water and irrigation, particularly at Alqueva”, but also “in mechanisation and excellence in terms of expertise”, praised José Manuel Fernandes.
When asked by Lusa about the Alqueva Development and Infrastructure Company’s (EDIA) plans for two new reservoirs in the districts of Mértola and Beja, on streams that are tributaries of the river Guadiana, the Minister for Agriculture said he hoped “everything would move quickly”.
“Unfortunately, it always takes time, and I hope the processes are fast-tracked and that, afterwards, there are no injunctions that cause harm,” he argued.
According to José Manuel Fernandes, “the work will always go ahead”, but injunctions “delay, hinder and place a financial burden on every Portuguese taxpayer”, unnecessarily so because “everything is carried out in compliance with all environmental regulations”.
On 18 June, the president of EDIA, José Pedro Salema, told Lusa that the ‘first steps’ are being taken on the dams planned "downstream of the Alqueva-Pedrógão system", on the Terges, Cobres and Carreiras streams, with the aim of "increasing the resilience of the Alqueva system".
On the 20th of that month, the environmental organisation Zero opposed the two projects and demanded a “formal commitment from the Government” not to build new dams on the tributaries of the River Guadiana.
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