Rahmon: Tajikistan should make its economy more resilient to negative external factors

DUSHANBE. May 27 (Interfax) - Tajikistan needs to productively use all resources at its disposal amid the increasing crises around the world, attaching special significance to the agricultural sector, Tajik President Emomali Rahmon said at a meeting with senior officials and activists in the Dangara district of the Khatlon region.

"The increasing crises in the contemporary world, including various regional conflicts, economic and trade sanctions, climate change and its consequences, including the continuing drought, prompt us to use all resources available to us in an efficient way to make Tajikistan's economy resilient to the negative effects of external factors and protect our country's food security," Rahmon said.

There are quite a lot of such opportunities in the agricultural sector, which is considered one of the main resources for ensuring food security, producing raw materials for industrial enterprises, creating jobs, and increasing the employment rate, he said.

"Over the first four months of 2024, the country's agricultural production amounted to 5.158 billion somoni, which is 7.1% more than in the same period last year. However, there're still a lot of opportunities for developing the sector," he said.

Rahmon instructed the Agriculture Ministry and local administrations to take effective measures to complete the spring sowing campaign and then carry out the harvesting campaign in time.

He also called for paying special attention to land reclamation, launching the agricultural use of fallow and virgin land, and increasing the size of farmland by applying drip irrigation.

Tajikistan exported 84,300 tonnes of agricultural produce worth over one billion somoni in January-April 2024, which is nearly 50% more than it did in the same period last year, Rahmon said.

In particular, Tajikistan's fruit and vegetable exports grew by more than 30% to 40,000 tonnes, worth 158 million somoni, he said.

The Sughd region alone exported 32,000 tonnes of fruit and vegetables worth 145 million somoni in this period, thus accounting for nearly 92% of the entire value of such exports from Tajikistan.