Cotton production in Uzbekistan
[2][4] The Uzbekistan cotton industry has also been affected by the boycotting of its cotton by many global companies after human rights reports revealed working conditions that include child labor and forced labor as well as a boycott due to the destruction caused to the Aral Sea through the diversion of water away from it.
[10] The government strictly controlled the industry and introduced quotas to ensure efficient production at collective farms (kolkhozes).
[14] Another cause behind moves to diversify may be environmental, because the large quantities of irrigation and fertilization needed to produce cotton have contributed to the drying up of the Aral Sea and to the severe pollution of the soil in the surrounding areas.
[4] Forced child labour in cotton production is a practice in Uzbekistan, and the Uzbek government has long employed children as young as 9 in the industry.
"[16] The Cotton Campaign actively seeks for government change in respecting human rights and to permit the International Labour Organization to monitor production in the country.
[16] As a result of the human rights reports of misconduct in Uzbekistan, several companies such as H&M, Tesco, IKEA, Adidas and Marks & Spencer have detached themselves and have proclaimed that they are doing all they can to avoid and boycott the use of Uzbekistani cotton in their products.
In early 2012, Uzbekistani Prime Minister Shavkat Mirziyayev (who has since succeeded Karimov to the presidency of Uzbekistan) issued a decree banning children from working in the cotton fields.
[13] However, many professionals including teachers, college lecturers, doctors and nurses are still forced to work in the fields at times of harvest.
[13] Now outlawed, the defoliant Butifos is responsible for exceptionally high infant mortality and birth defect rates among children born to women who work in the cotton fields.
Starting from the 2020 harvest season, State regulation of cotton production, price and mandatory sales plan is abolished.
At this point, it was expected that Uzbekistan's cotton exports will be kept to minimal levels due to the government policy to increase value-added yarn and fabric production and develop the domestic textile industry.
Notably, in 2018 American company Silverleafe invested heavily into developing a cotton cluster in the Jizzakh region of Uzbekistan.
[23] The company is working to introduce modern and sustainable technologies to the Uzbek cotton sector, including full traceability of products.
[24] Uzbek cotton exports have become the cause of a scandal related to the Russian-Ukrainian war and sanctions imposed on the Russian military industry.
According to the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP), Vlast, and iStories, after February 24, 2022, Uzbekistan significantly increased its exports of cotton pulp and nitrocellulose to Russia, key components for the manufacture of explosives and gunpowder.
