Azernews.Az

By Naila Huseynli

This year cotton has been planted on 132,500 hectares in 22 regions of Azerbaijan, and 260,000 tons of cotton are expected to be harvested by the end of the season, Azerbaijan’s Agriculture Minister Inam Karimov said on August 15.

He was speaking at a republican meeting in the Salyan region dedicated to fulfilling the tasks given at the meeting regarding the development of cotton growing held in Barda region on March 26 with the participation of President Ilham Aliyev.

At the meeting held at the Heydar Aliyev Center, the minister of agriculture touched upon the comprehensive measures for the development of cotton growing in Azerbaijan, which have been held since 2016. He told about the policy of subsidies for cotton products, noting that with the support of the state, large-scale measures are being implemented to provide farmers with fertilizers, cars and equipment. Presently, agrotechnical work on cotton growing continues.

The construction of a cotton processing plant in Ujar with a capacity of 40,000 tons of cotton per year is nearing completion. The plant will also produce 20,000 tons of cottonseed oil and 2,500-3,000 tons of cottonseed.

The construction of nine plants began in the Light Industry Park in Mingachevir, and two of these plants began operating in February this year, while the construction of another seven plants will be completed before 2021.

About 90,000 tons of cotton were harvested in 2016 and 207,000 tons of cotton were harvested last year.

Cotton is the most widely used fiber in the world today, comprising half of all fiber production. Around 90 countries worldwide grow cotton, used to make clothes and other textiles worldwide, with much of the rest coming from synthetic products.

Cotton production was of crucial importance for the national economy in 1970-1980s, accounting for approximately 25 percent of overall agricultural revenue. At the time Azerbaijan harvested a million tons of cotton per year.

Cotton production, once considered to a key culture for the rural areas of Azerbaijan, now gets a chance to revive, following considerable decline observed over the past few years. Year 2016 was a turning point from the perspective of cotton-growing in the country.

The State Program for 2017-2022 is aimed at strengthening measures directed at developing this sphere. The purpose of the State Program is to develop cotton growing, increase export potential in this sphere, ensure employment of the rural population and increase the production of cotton.

The purpose of the State Program is to develop cotton growing in Azerbaijan, increase export potential in this sphere, ensure employment of the rural population and increase the production of cotton to 500,000 tons in 2022.