State order and policy strategies in the cotton and wheat value chains

Abstract

Despite the establishment of private farms in Uzbekistan after its independence from the Soviet Union in 1991, agricultural production and the respective decision making remain to a large extent centrally managed by the national administration. Maintaining the state order system on cotton and wheat reflects the gradual approach that Uzbekistan is taking to reforms, possibly with the aim of cushioning potential financial and social shocks and preventing the collapse of the agricultural and industrial production systems. However, due to a wide range of market constraints and administrative barriers, the efficiency of the present resource use remains low. One pathway to identify opportunities for increasing those efficiencies is to analyze entire value chains for agro-commodities - including the agricultural and agro-processing sectors and to identify the deficiencies in the chains. Here, we apply a value chain analysis approach to the two strategic crops in the Khorezm region of Uzbekistan. The results of the analyses show that the cotton chain plays a significant role in the regional economy. It earns 99% of the export revenues, contributes 16% to the regional GDP, creates considerable output value and value added, supports employment (30-40% of the total regional labor force) and social security, and creates positive fund flows to the state budget (taxes minus subsidies). Developing the agro-processing sector in the cotton chain would bear the potential for generating higher export revenues (double in the case of export of processed cotton products such as T-shirts) at the same level of resource use or for maintaining the present export revenues while reducing the use of resources (cropland, irrigation water, labor and capital) by 30%. Whereas the state does not earn much from the wheat value chain, the declared Uzbek policy of food self-sufficiency after independence in 1991 helped to reduce food insecurity and alleviate poverty. This chapter gives some insights on the state order system, provides an overview of value chains of cotton and wheat and offers options for improving agricultural resource use, and the welfare and environment of the country in general and the Khorezm region in particular.