DUSHANBE, October 11, 2011 Asia-Plus — The country’s cotton growers are expected to fulfill their targets by the end of this week, according to the Ministry of Agriculture (MoA).
The source at a MoA says the country has yielded 372,825 tons of cotton by October 11, which comprises 95.6 percent of this year”s target that has been determined at 390,000 tons of cotton. Yesterday, alone, cotton growers yielded 1.2 percent of this year’s target, he added.
Cotton growers of Khatlon province have yielded 251,400 tons of cotton to the state so far, which is 96.5 percent the target.
Cotton producing farms in districts subordinate to the center (Vahdat district and Hisor Valley) have yielded 23,200 tons of raw cotton by October 10, which is 95.2 percent of the target.
Cotton producing districts in the northern Sughd province have gathered 98,100 tons of a valuable textile raw material to this day, which is 93.5 percent of the target.
18 cotton producing districts in the country have already fulfilled their targets and are continuing to gather cotton in addition to their obligations. “We expect the national cotton target to be fulfilled by October 16,” the source stressed.
In the meantime, the MoA specialists are sure that Tajik cotton growers can yield more than 420,000 tons of cotton this year.
Last year, Tajikistan yielded 310,513 tons of raw cotton from 160,400 hectares, which was 10,500 tons more than it was originally planned and 3.2 percent (13,500 tons) more than in 2009.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. Cotton fiber accounts for some 15 percent of Tajikistan’s exports. Tajikistan is reportedly the world’s fourth largest exporter of cotton, and there is strong demand on international markets for its high quality product.
