Uzbek Cotton and Textiles Fair and ICAC’s 76th Plenary

Uzbekistan’s annual International Cotton and Textiles Fair and the 76th Plenary Meeting of the International Cotton Advisory Committee opened today in Tashkent with a combined international and domestic audience numbering several hundred people.
The opening session was addressed on behalf of the government of the Republic of Uzbekistan by Minister Akmal Kamalov, who remarked on the key economic and social developments and achievements of the country, as well as new directions for future progress including those in the cotton sector. The speaker gave a detailed account of the latest achievements in cotton production and ginning, including new seed varieties, modernisation of the ginning process, storage, logistics and others. A special emphasis was given to the fact that the state’s current policy is to maintain stable production of cotton, which is much needed to meet the requirements of the fast-growing domestic processing sector. Domestic mills are expected to consume some 70 percent of the country’s cotton output in the next calendar year; this represents an upward trend that will continue.

Kai Hughes, the ICAC’s Executive Director, spoke of the committee’s development and initiatives, and of the challenges facing the organisation. A thorough review of its structure and activities is planned, for the development of a new strategic plan. For instance, communication of developments on sustainability must be improved and the organisation must act as a counterweight for exaggerated and uninformed adverse commentary on cotton that often pervades today’s general media. Another area in which the committee might do more is in the realm of technical and research information.

The ICAC’s 2017 Researcher of the Year was named as Mr. David M. Stelly, a geneticist from Texas A & M University, USA.

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