By Kamila Aliyeva

Cotton of Kazakhstan varieties is being exported to eleven countries.

This was stated by the chairman of the board of the National Agrarian Scientific-Educational Center under the Kazakh Agriculture Ministry Askar Nametov, Kazinform reported.

"In 1991 there were no own cotton varieties in Kazakhstan. Currently, ten varieties were created, five of which successfully passed tests. At present, the yield of raw cotton is 22-23 centners per hectare, although the potential of new domestic varieties is 38-40 centners per hectare," he said.

The task is to raise it by 30-40 percent, while improving the quality of cotton fiber, which will help to increase the competitiveness of cotton fiber and oil products, both on the external and domestic markets, according to Nametov.

The cotton of domestic varieties is currently exported to 11 countries, including Russia, Belarus, Germany, Latvia, Moldova, China, Belgium, Iran, Ukraine, Italy and Korea, according to the chairman.

He also added that at present about 160 varieties and hybrids of 25 species of Kazakh breeding have been allowed to use, of which 39 are varieties of potatoes and 103 types - of vegetables and cabbage crops.

More than 24 percent of the Kazakh population is employed in the agricultural sector. Family farms account for approximately 70 percent of land in Southern and South-eastern Kazakhstan, and account for an estimated 95 percent of total cotton production.

While Kazakhstan is significantly larger than its Central Asian neighbors in terms of land area, its cotton production is relatively low due to the significance of grain cultivation and other food crops.