Cotton production on course to meet goals.

Since cotton is a major source of income for various rural laborers, including women, according to the experts, they want to raise awareness of the critical role that cotton plays in economic development, international trade and poverty alleviation. As a crop resistant to climatic changes, cotton can be planted in dry and arid zones. Statistics showed that it occupies just 2.1 percent of the world's arable land, but it meets 27 percent of the world's textile needs. Approximately 80 percent of cotton is used in the clothing industry, 15 percent in home furnishings and the remaining 5 percent mostly accounts for non-woven applications, like filters and padding. Almost nothing from cotton is wasted. In addition to textiles and apparel, food products can be derived from it, like edible oil and animal feed from the seed. Other uses have been developed presently, like using cotton-based filaments in 3D printers, because they conduct heat well, become stronger when wet, and are more scalable than materials like wood.

Area, Production And Yield Of Cotton

##Area###Production###Yield

Year###(000 Hectare)###% Change (000 Bales)###% Change (Kgs/Hec) % Change

2016-17###2,489###A###10,671###A###729###A

2017-18###2,700###8.5###11,946###11.9###753###3.3

2018-19###2,373###-12.1###9,861###-17.5###707###-6.1

2019-20###2,517###6.1###9,148###-7.2###618###-12.6

2020-21(P)###2,079###-17.4###7,064###-22.8###578###-6.5

According to the domestic field experts in Pakistan, cotton crop stands vital in agriculture also textile sector of the economy. It contributes around 0.6 percent to Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and 3.1 percent of the value added in agriculture sector. It is also said that this crop faces multiple problems and competes with other crops mainly sugarcane. International prices also play a role. Being an export oriented raw material of textile industries, maintaining prices at levels competitive with the international market while ensuring due profitability of growers has been a great challenge for policy makers.

During 2020-21, cotton crop was cultivated on 2,079 thousand hectares, reflecting a contraction of 17.4 percent as against to last year's sown area of 2,517 thousand hectares. Production fell by 22.8 percent to 7.064 million bales against production of 9.148 million bales previous year. Falling cultivated area has reduced production as the crop has lost its competitiveness relative to other...