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Obstacles to crop diversification and cotton harvest mechanisation: Farm survey evidence from two contrasting districts in Uzbekistan
[Hindernisse bei der Einführung diversifizierter Fruchtfolgen und der mechanisierten Baumwollernte: Ergebnisse einer landwirtschaftlichen Betriebsbefragung in zwei unterschiedlichen Landkreisen in Usbekistan]

Author

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  • Petrick, Martin
  • Djanibekov, Nodir

Abstract

The dominance of cotton in the irrigated areas of Central Asia has long been criticized for its ecological effects on salinization and desertification. From an economic point of view, this monoculture ties producers to state procurement, has led to the recurrent mobilization of manual labour during harvest campaigns and makes farmers vulnerable to water availability and crop failure. Crop diversification and harvest mechanisation have been proposed as strategies to mitigate these effects, provide alternative income generation channels and increase farmers´ flexibility in dealing with reduced water availability. This contribution uses 2014 survey data from two districts in Uzbekistan, Jondor in Bukhara province and Zangiota in Tashkent province, to inform this debate by identifying real-world obstacles to these strategies. The first district is dominated by the conventional cotton and wheat rotation introduced after 1991. The second district is home to a wide range of high-value crops (HVC), in particular fruits and vegetables. The evidence shows how HVCs can be a profitable alternative to the state-mandated monocultures. Moreover, water productivity of HVCs is much higher. Even so, there is practically no hands-on experience of harvest mechanisation in the traditional cotton region so far. In addition to the state delivery targets, a lack of finance, absent connections to city markets, missing role models and the complete inexperience of farmers with alternative technologies will impede a further expansion of crop diversification and the mechanisation of harvest operations.

Suggested Citation

  • Petrick, Martin & Djanibekov, Nodir, 2016. "Obstacles to crop diversification and cotton harvest mechanisation: Farm survey evidence from two contrasting districts in Uzbekistan [Hindernisse bei der Einführung diversifizierter Fruchtfolgen u," IAMO Discussion Papers 153, Leibniz Institute of Agricultural Development in Transition Economies (IAMO).
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:iamodp:153
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    Cited by:

    1. Mirshadiev, Mirzokhid & Fleskens, Luuk & van Dam, Jos & Pulatov, Alim, 2018. "Scoping of promising land management and water use practices in the dry areas of Uzbekistan," Agricultural Water Management, Elsevier, vol. 207(C), pages 15-25.
    2. Csáki, Csaba & Jámbor, Attila, 2018. "Konvergencia vagy divergencia. Merre tart Kelet-Közép-Európa és a FÁK mezőgazdasága? [Convergence versus divergence: Where is agriculture in Central and Eastern Europe and the CIS countries heading," Közgazdasági Szemle (Economic Review - monthly of the Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Közgazdasági Szemle Alapítvány (Economic Review Foundation), vol. 0(10), pages 1048-1066.
    3. Bozorov, Abdurashid & Feuerbacher, Arndt & Wieck, Christine, 2021. "A 2014 Social Accounting Matrix (SAM) for Uzbekistan with a Focus on the Agricultural Sector," Working Papers 309974, Universitaet Hohenheim, Institute of Agricultural Policy and Agricultural Markets.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    cotton; high-value crops; crop diversification; harvest mechanisation; Uzbekistan; Baumwolle; high-value crops; Diversifizierung; Erntemechanisierung; Usbekistan;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • O33 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - Technological Change: Choices and Consequences; Diffusion Processes
    • P28 - Political Economy and Comparative Economic Systems - - Socialist and Transition Economies - - - Natural Resources; Environment
    • Q12 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Micro Analysis of Farm Firms, Farm Households, and Farm Input Markets
    • Q15 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Agriculture - - - Land Ownership and Tenure; Land Reform; Land Use; Irrigation; Agriculture and Environment

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