The areas allocated for cotton cultivation will amount to 105,000 hectares in 2020, Azerbaijan’s Agriculture Minister Inam Karimov said.
According to the new subsidization mechanism, that will come into force in 2020, some 220 manats ($129) will be issued to farmers for every hectare of sown cotton, and 100 manats ($58) for each ton of harvested cotton.
“In this case, farmers with a yield of 30 hundredweights of cotton per hectare will receive subsidies in the amount of 520 manats ($305), which is 55% of their expenditures,” Karimov said.
He noted that the issue of subsidies through the Electronic Agriculture System would accelerate the process and improve the quality of service.
In 2019 some 294,000 tons of cotton were harvested in Azerbaijan, with the productivity of 29.4 hundredweights per hectare. This is a record indicator in the country’s history.
Azerbaijan entered a new stage of cotton breeding in early 2017 with the approval of the State Program for 2017-2022 that 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. As a result of the program, raw cotton production in 2022 is expected to reach 500,000 tons.
Cotton production ensures main income for over 200,000 people in Azerbaijan, including farmers, seasonal workers, and specialists working in the cotton fields such as agronomists, mechanics, drivers and others. Some 23 cotton plants, seven yarn factories and three cotton oil companies operate in the country.
In 2018, 230,000 tons of raw cotton were produced in the country, up by 12.2% YoY. (AzerNews/Business World Magazine)