DUSHANBE, September 30, Asia-Plus – Tajik cotton growers are taking real measures to gather cotton.
According to the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA), cotton growers in the southern Khatlon province have yielded more than 167,500 tons of raw cotton by September 30.
Cotton growing districts in the northern province of Sughd have yielded little more than 42,000 tons of cotton by September 30, and cotton growers in districts subordinate to the center have yielded 5,700 tons by September 30.
The republic has yielded more than 215,000 tons of raw cotton by September 30, which comprises 53 percent of this year’s target.
According to the MoA crop sector department, Tajik farmers have planted cotton on 192,000 hectares this year and the MoA specialists expect them to yield more than 406,000 tons raw cotton this year.
Last year, Tajik farmers reportedly yielded 415,000 tons of raw cotton from 200,000 hectares.
Cotton makes an important contribution to both the agricultural sector and the national economy. Cotton accounts for 60 percent of agricultural output, supports 75 percent of the rural population, and uses 45 percent of irrigated arable land. At the national level, it is an important source of both export earnings and tax revenue. Tajikistan is the world’s fourth largest exporter of cotton, and there is strong demand on international markets for its high quality product.
