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Bangladesh hopes to boost cotton yield

DHAKA: Bangladesh hopes to increase its cotton yield by 40,000 tonnes a year to cut its reliance on imports, a senior official said on Saturday.

The country produces only 15 percent of its annual requirement of 320,000 tonnes from 40,000 hectares (100,000 acres), according to Mohammad Tofazzal Hossain, executive director of the Bangladesh Cotton Development Board.

Last year the yield dropped to 24,000 tonnes because of massive flooding. But demand is expected to rise by at least 40,000 tonnes a year.

"To meet at least 40 percent of requirements in 2002, the government is planning to bring 260,000 hectares of land under cultivation in the next two years," Hossain told Reuters. It also plans to use higher-yielding seeds.

Bangladesh spends nearly 13.6 billion taka ($266.67 million) annually on cotton imports, mainly from Uzbekistan, Pakistan and India.

It earns some $4 billion a year exporting readymade garments, mostly to European Union countries and the United States, commerce ministry officials say.

Hossain said the government was trying to arrange funds for the expansion and modernisation of existing mills and seeking fresh investment in the sector.

Hossain said Bangladeshis were still "a bit naive" about cultivating cotton because it gives them smaller profits compared to other crops you need seven to nine months to harvest one cotton crop in Bangladesh while three paddy crops can be grown in a year.

"But more people will be encouraged to cultivate cotton with the government's plan to bring in higher-yielding seeds," Hossain said. -Reuters