Uzbek Textile Sector Resurges After Boycott Ends In 2021
Uzbekistan is the world’s sixth largest cotton producer, and has seen massive growth in its textile sector following reforms and the end of an international boycott of Uzbek cotton.
The boycott was started in 2010 by the Cotton Campaign due to allegations of forced harvesting, in which more than 2 million people, including children, were forced to work in the fields.
“The World Bank and the United Nations International Labour Organization (ILO) concluded that forced labour had been eliminated in 2021 and so the boycott was lifted in 2022,” Euro News reported.
Cotton pickers saw their wages increase by up to US $500 per month and Uzbekistan has switched from exporting raw materials to manufacturing finished textile products, leading to an increase in exports.
Textile exports increased from hundreds of millions during the boycott, to $3.2 billion in 2022. The country now also has numerous textile companies who aim to produce and export quality textiles.
