Better Cotton explores the future of Uzbekistan’s cotton sector

Held in collaboration with the National Commission of Combatting Human Trafficking and Forced Labour and the Uzbekistan Textile and Garment Industry Association, the organisation welcomed representatives from government, fashion retailers and brands, civil society NGOs, manufacturers, cotton producers, donors and knowledge partners. 

The event, on 12 December, marked the end of a year in which Better Cotton has licensed its first clusters of farms in the country and launched a Roadmap of Sustainability Developments to unite influential stakeholders and advance the cotton sector’s sustainability credentials.  

Speakers included Ilkhom Khaydarov, Chairman of the Uzbekistan Textile and Garment Industry Association, Marco Mantovanelli, Country Manager for Uzbekistan at the World Bank, and Joachim Fritz, Country Director for the German Agency for International Cooperation (GIZ). 

The event explored four key themes: Sustainable Economic Development & Market Access, Regenerative Agriculture; Decent Work and Gender Equality; and Better Cotton’s Principles & Criteria V.3.0. 

An Innovation Marketplace – in which stakeholders presented the latest tools and sustainable practices in cotton production – was held to drive discussion around effective solutions. 

"Our multistakeholder event in Tashkent was hugely successful in convening key stakeholders, reflecting on our journey to date and aligning on next steps. There is clear appetite for more sustainable agricultural practices in cotton, both at the farm-level and at the organisations we work with, and we’re committed to delivering this."

Damien Sanfilippo, Senior Director of Programmes, Better Cotton