Two prominent institutes owned by the governments in China and Pakistan have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to boost Pakistan’s cotton production through technological methods, state broadcaster reported on Sunday.
Cotton is one of Pakistan’s most important cash crops. At present, Pakistan is the fifth-largest producer of cotton and the third-largest producer of cotton yarn in the world, according to the Ayub Agricultural Institute.
Cotton has a 0.8% share in Pakistan’s GDP and a massive 51% share in the country’s total foreign exchange earnings. Cotton production in Pakistan has contributed to a vibrant textile industry with over 1,000 ginning factories and around 400 textile mills across the country.
“The MoU has been signed between the Ayub Agricultural Research Institute of Pakistan (AAIR) and the Institute of Cotton Research (ICR) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences,” Radio Pakistan said in a report.
It said that as per the agreement, AAIR and ICR will work on genetically improving cotton to increase its production and promote Pakistan’s cotton industry globally.
ICR is China’s only state-level organization for professional cotton research. It focuses on basic and applied research, and organizes and presides over major national cotton research projects that address significant science and technology-related issues in cotton production.
Established in 1962, Punjab government’s AAIR describes itself as one of the country’s most prestigious research institutes that says its mission is to develop new varieties of crops and technologies for food safety.
The agreement takes place as Pakistan faces a surge in cotton imports this year due to low production. According to the Pakistan Central Cotton Committee, factories in Pakistan have received 5.51 million bales of cotton as of January this year, a significant decline of 34% compared to last year.
Pakistan’s eastern Punjab province, which produces the most cotton out of all provinces in the country, grew 2.7 million bales, a decline of more than 36% compared to last year.
Experts blame the low production of cotton due to irregular weather patterns brought about by climate change.