Committee for Development of Silk and Wool Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan Visited ISU

Uzbekistan is the third largest silk producer in the world, second only to China and India, and has a high influence in the international silk industry. On December 27, 2023, Ergashev Iqboljon Odiljonovich, chairman of the Committee for Development of Silk and Wool Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan, led a delegation of 16 representatives from Uzbekistan to visit International Silk Union(ISU). Zhang Guoqiang, chairman of ISU, received the visit. Аbdulazizov Shukhrat Аbdulazizovich, director of Scientific Research Institute of Sericulture, Rick Li, secretary general of ISU, and representatives of more than 10 silk enterprises in Uzbekistan, representatives of relevant departments of Cathaya Group, secretaries of ISU Secretariat attended the meeting.

Chairman Zhang Guoqiang welcomed the visit of chairman Ergashev Iqboljon Odiljonovich and his delegation, and introduced the basic situation of ISU and its chairman unit -- Cathaya Group. He hoped to use this exchange as an opportunity to maintain close contact with the Committee for Development of Silk and Wool Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan in the future, strengthen industrial cooperation, and jointly promote the healthy and sustainable development of the international silk industry.

Chairman Ergashev Iqboljon Odiljoovich stated that in recent years, Uzbekistan's silk industry has been in a growth trend, and the country attaches great importance to the development of the sericulture and silk industry. At this year's presidential meeting, strengthening exchanges with China in this field was emphasized. The visit of this time, to organized representative silk enterprises from Uzbekistan, was aims to establish close contacts and further promote exchanges between the two sides in technology docking, industrial cooperation, investment promotion, and other aspects.

During the meeting, Pepper Liu, secretary of ISU, further introduced the development process, main works from 2015 to 2023, and future work directions of ISU; Wu Yujia, supervisor of Investment & Strategy Dept. of Cathaya Group, further introduced the development of Cathaya Group from the aspects of company overview, global layout, the silk textile industry chain, and the sericulture biotechnology industry chain.

Huang Ran, deputy general manager of Cathaya Holdings Ltd., introduced the basic situation of the International Network for Silk initiated by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of the People’s Republic of China; Rick Li, secretary general of ISU and president of Periodicals Agency of Zhejiang Sci-Tech University(ZSTU), introduced the basic situation of ZSTU and Journal of Silk.

Both sides have engaged in in-depth exchanges around the industrial development pattern and potential areas of cooperation between China and Uzbekistan, hoping to jointly promote the healthy and sustainable development of the international silk industry. The Uzbekistan delegation further expressed its hope for close exchanges between the two sides, more visits to Chinese silk enterprises, learning advanced production technologies and equipment, and participating in representative silk expo in China. At the same time, they also expressed the welcome for ISU to organize a delegation to visit the Uzbekistan’s silk industry. chairman Zhang Guoqiang and chairman Ergashev Iqboljon Odiljonovich exchanged the gifts with each other.

After the meeting, some representatives from Uzbekistan visited Hangzhou China Silk Printing Technology Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of the chairman's unit.

Committee for Development of Silk and Wool Industry of the Ministry of Agriculture of the Republic of Uzbekistan

By the Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan “On measures for the further development of sericulture and astrakhan culture in the Republic of Uzbekistan”, a Committee for the development of sericulture and the wool industry was created. The main tasks of the Committee are determined by:

1. implementation of a unified state policy

2. in the field of sericulture and karakul farming, as well as ensuring the coordinated development of industries with the implementation of a unified scientific and technical policy;

3. maintaining strict records and studying the stock of mulberry plantations and pastures, as well as improving the food supply for the development of sericulture and astrakhan culture;

4.  introduction of highly productive breeds of silkworms and Karakul sheep;

5. creation of favorable conditions for the procurement and processing of raw materials for the production of finished products from silk and astrakhan fur;

6. conducting marketing research and assistance in marketing silk and astrakhan products, primarily in foreign markets;

7. comprehensive assistance to business entities involved in sericulture and astrakhan culture in expanding their activities, creating clusters and exporting products.