Pakistan will press ahead with plans to lease or sell farmland to foreign investors despite United Nations concern over such deals, arguing the land would otherwise lie fallow, Pakistan's foreign minister said.

Pakistan offered last year to sell or lease 1 million acres (404,700 hectares) of farmland to foreign investors looking to secure food supplies to their countries, which sparked a popular outcry against foreign investors taking over Pakistani land.

The United Nations has also expressed concern that farmers' rights in developing countries might be compromised if rich countries buy their land.

'Many people misunderstood these deals, and we are now trying to explain to them that the land we want to sell is not land that belongs to anyone or even has any existing agriculture activity,' Shah Mehmood Qureshi told Reuters in an interview late on Tuesday during a visit to Dubai.

'The land we want to offer investors is not used by anyone due to lack of investment, and so we are committed to going ahead with the deals.'

The farmland on offer is in the Western Sindh province and the northwestern province of Punjab, Qureshi said.

Over 60 per cent of Pakistan's population of 170 million directly or indirectly benefits from agriculture revenues, he added.

'So every dollar invested in agriculture creates more jobs than any other sector, and I can openly say that agriculture development is the key to alleviating poverty in Pakistan.'    

Gulf countries, which rely heavily on food imports, have been seeking farmland in developing nations to secure supplies and have expressed interest in Pakistan's land offers over the past year. But no final deals have been signed, Qureshi said.

Violence has surged in Pakistan, especially in the northwest, where the spread of Taliban influence has heightened security concerns.

'Security is an issue that we always get asked about but the overall situation is Pakistan is unduly exaggerated, we can't deny or brush aside difficulties we are going through, nor address these problems over night,' Qureshi said.

He added that according to 'conservative' estimates, his country had suffered losses of $35 billion since the September 11, 2001 attacks on New York and Washington.

Pakistan said last year it would install a 100,000-strong security force to ensure a stable environment for investment in farmlands in four provinces of the country.-Reuters