ABSTRACT
Cotton is ‘king’ in Uzbekistan, which means that it is a crucial element of the political economy of the country. In countries such as Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan (and the southern regions of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan) cotton ‘rules the waves’ and therefore is fundamental in rural livelihoods. Unfortunately there are many cotton-producing areas where poverty incidence is high and where the environmental situation has long been deteriorating, starting during the Soviet era, but continuing during the transition period. This chapter focuses on the largest producer of cotton, Uzbekistan, which is highly dependent on cotton exports. Uzbekistan is also a country in which state intervention in the cotton sector is still very high, with a predominant institutional framework that is favourable for the ruling elite, but detrimental for the livelihoods of cotton producers and in particular landless cotton workers.
