The area allocated for cotton cultivation in Azerbaijan in 2020 is 105,000 hectares, the country’s Agriculture Minister Inam Karimov said recently. According to the new subsidy mechanism, which will come into force in 2020, $129 will be issued to farmers for every hectare of sown cotton, and $58 for each tonne of harvested cotton, the Minister said.
Issuing subsidies through the Electronic Agriculture System will accelerate the process and improve the quality of service; quoted him as saying. In 2019, some 294,000 tonne of cotton were harvested in Azerbaijan. Azerbaijan entered a new stage of cotton breeding in early 2017 with the approval of the State Program for 2017-2022, which that aimed at strengthening measures directed at developing this sector. As a result, raw cotton production in 2022 is expected to reach 500,000 tonne.
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.
