CRISPR-BASED CLIMATE-RESILIENT CROP IMPROVEMENT FOR SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE IN PAKISTAN

Abstract

Climate change poses significant threats to agricultural productivity, food security, and environmental sustainability, particularly in developing countries such as Pakistan. Increasing temperatures, water scarcity, soil salinity, floods, droughts, and emerging crop diseases have intensified the need for innovative agricultural technologies capable of enhancing crop resilience and ensuring sustainable food production. This study examined the role of CRISPR-based climate-resilient crop improvement in promoting sustainable agriculture in Pakistan, with climate resilience serving as the mediating mechanism. Guided by Sustainable Agricultural Innovation Theory, the study adopted a quantitative, cross-sectional research design to investigate the relationships among the proposed constructs. Data were collected using a structured questionnaire from agricultural scientists, plant breeders, biotechnology researchers, extension officers, and progressive farmers. The collected data were analyzed using Partial Least Squares Structural Equation Modeling (PLS-SEM) to evaluate the measurement and structural models. The findings indicated that CRISPR-based crop improvement significantly enhanced climate resilience and sustainable agriculture. Climate resilience also exerted a significant positive influence on sustainable agriculture and partially mediated the relationship between CRISPR-based crop improvement and sustainable agricultural development. The study demonstrates that precise genome-editing technologies can improve crop tolerance to drought, heat, salinity, floods, pests, and diseases while increasing productivity and resource-use efficiency. The findings provide important theoretical, practical, and policy implications by emphasizing the need for greater investment in agricultural biotechnology, supportive regulatory frameworks, research capacity building, and public–private collaboration to accelerate the adoption of CRISPR technologies for climate-smart agriculture and long-term food security in Pakistan