On December 12, President Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting to discuss measures to further enhance the effectiveness of reforms in the textile and leather industries.

These industries play an important role in providing employment and increasing exports. Specifically, 430,000 people are employed in such enterprises. The light industry accounts for 14% of total production and 16% of exports.

However, in the current challenging conditions, the situation in foreign markets is changing rapidly. As a result, export prices have decreased by 9% for yarn, 15% for fabrics, and 13% for finished products. Demand for finished products in our primary export markets has also declined.

The meeting discussed measures for adapting to these conditions and fully mobilizing internal resources.

From January to November, exports of textile products amounted to 2.6 billion USD. It was emphasized that the existing capabilities of the industry make it possible to significantly increase this figure.

It was noted that under the conditions of decreasing prices for cotton fiber in the world market it is essential to increase deep processing of fiber and yarn. For this purpose, additional measures of supporting fabric manufacturing and dyeing enterprises are outlined. As a result, the goal has been set to raise the yarn processing to 70%.

In addition, the abolition of the 10-percent levy on the export of sheep and goat skins this year resulted in concluding export contracts worth 3 million USD. It was instructed to continue this practice next year to increase the volume of exports.

Reports of responsible persons on measures to ensure the uninterrupted supply of raw materials to leather enterprises and plans for the future were heard.

It was pointed out that there is a shortage of middle-level personnel in the leather industry - tailors, sewers, craftsmen. Currently, only 167 specialists annually graduate in this sphere. In this respect, it was proposed to introduce a system of dual training, linking the leading enterprises of Andijan, Namangan, Ferghana, Samarkand, and Tashkent regions with local technical schools.

Plans for the next year were announced at the meeting.

As it was noted, it is planned to attract over 2 billion USD in foreign investment to the light industry, implement 82 major projects, and create 25,000 new jobs. It is expected to increase the export of textile products to 4 billion USD, and leather products - up to 250 million USD.