PAKISTAN and China signed four memorandums of understanding related to the agricultural sector on Saturday when President Zardari visited the Hubei province known for the proper management of its vast water resources and high agricultural output. Although we have a predominantly agricultural economy, with extensive tracts of fertile lands and substantial river flows, we have not paid much attention to its development on scientific lines. The result: average productivity remains markedly lower than elsewhere in the world. Only at places have progressive farmers been able to get higher yields but that is the fruit of individual efforts. It is high time the state took up the challenge and built upon the valuable asset. Having made the right move and elicited cooperation from China, Mr Zardari should also sort out the irrational internal discord that has so far prevented the country from managing its plentiful water resources on sound basis and, unfortunately, let them go waste to the sea. Flourishing fields will not only provide food security to the people at cheaper rates but also help bring prosperity through exports and the use of raw material agriculture generates for industrial development. The MoU between the government of Sindh and Hubei Seed Group visualises the joint development of rice hybrid seed and its commercial production here to enable the land in Pakistan to give substantially higher yield. Similarly, to increase oil seed production, the Pakistan Agriculture and Research Council signed an MoU with Hubei Research Group. It will entail the development and transfer of germplasm technology. Two other MoUs, one envisaging assistance from China Harbour Engineering to help establish dredging works at Karachi Port, Port Qasim and Gwadar Port and the other calling for the exchange of high-level visits to expand cooperation, were also signed. There is need to pursue these MoUs with due diligence and draw the maximum benefit from the Chinese experience. Periodic exchange of visits and expansion of cooperation in different fields are the hallmark of friendly countries, which look for avenues to reinforce the bonds of their friendship. Mr Zardari did the right thing in offering excess of Pakistani ports to China to market products manufactured in its western provinces in other parts of the world and import goods for use there. That would help make the products more competitive by reducing the cost of transit and make for their quicker availability. But Pakistan would have to speed up the construction of road network of international standard to make it possible for Beijing to avail of the offer.