Water Management and Agricultural Development in Central Asia: Case of Uzbekistan

Abstract

Agriculture in Uzbekistan still plays a significant role in the national economy. This sector occupies about 27.0 percent of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in production (Figure 1). It also provides working opportunities for 36.2 percent of the total labor force (Figure 2). The slow pace of the changes in these figures indicates the slow progress in reforming the structure of the economy in Uzbekistan. Agricultural products are the major sources of foreign currency earnings for this economy. Cotton has been historically produced taking advantage of the natural conditions suitable for this crop’s cultivation with the existence of extensive rural infrastructure in water resource management that was developed during the period of the Soviet Union. Cotton has remained important as a strategic crop for hard currency earning. This crop earns about one third of the foreign currency revenue through exports.