Pakistan and China Join Forces to Revive Cotton Industry
Pakistan and China have entered a pivotal collaboration to revitalise Pakistan's cotton sector through the application of advanced agricultural technologies. This initiative was formalised through a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Ayub Agricultural Research Institute (AARI) in Punjab and China's Institute of Cotton Research (ICR), a state-level body operating under the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences.
This bilateral effort targets the enhancement of cotton yield and quality through genetic innovations and research-driven practices. The cotton sector is of critical economic importance to Pakistan, contributing 0.8% to the national GDP and accounting for 51% of foreign exchange earnings. Pakistan also ranks as the world’s fifth-largest cotton producer and third-largest cotton yarn producer, supporting a broad network of more than 1,000 ginning factories and 400 textile mills nationwide.
ICR leads China’s national cotton R&D programs and brings extensive expertise in modern farming solutions, while AARI stands as one of Pakistan’s premier agricultural institutions, active since 1962. The joint venture will also promote Pakistani cotton in global markets, offering strategic backing to a sector that has seen a stark decline.
This move comes at a time when Pakistan is grappling with significant drops in cotton output. As of January, the country’s textile factories had received 5.51 million bales—a 34% decline compared to the previous year. Punjab, the country’s largest cotton-producing province, faced a 36% drop in production, falling to just 2.7 million bales. The new collaboration aims to reverse this trend and rebuild the country’s cotton resilience through innovation and international cooperation.