Tashkent, Uzbekistan (UzDaily.com) -- On 18 October, President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev held a meeting on the expected results in the agricultural sector for the year and tasks for the next year.

Three years ago, our country adopted an agricultural development strategy for 2020-2030 and launched large-scale reforms. In particular, the export of fruits and vegetables increased 1.7 times and amounted to US$1.1 billion. As a result of the transition to market mechanisms in grain growing, farmers’ incomes doubled. This year, due to the distribution of land to the population, more than 1 million tons of food products have been additionally grown.

Due to climate change and the difficult situation in the world, food security is becoming a serious problem. It is expected that the prices of agricultural products in the world will rise. In such a situation, first of all, it is necessary to satisfy the demand of the population and make full use of export opportunities.

At the meeting, the Minister of Agriculture reported on plans in this direction.

The head of state outlined the current tasks in the field.

– It is not without reason that we pay special attention to and often discuss agricultural issues. Because it makes up a quarter of our economy. The well-being of our people, price stability, jobs are connected with it, said Shavkat Mirziyoyev.

First of all, the issue of increasing productivity through the efficient use of land and water resources is considered. The importance of helping farmers in determining the composition of the soil, choosing seeds, and protecting crops from pests was indicated.

In this regard, a proposal was approved for laser leveling of 200,000 hectares of land. Subsidies will be allocated for lands on which productivity has increased, and farmers’ expenses for the purchase of laser levels will be compensated.

The task was set to launch, together with foreign companies, projects for the effective management of water resources in the regions.

Along with land and water, financing is one of the most important resources for agriculture. In this regard, the meeting noted the need to expand the access of farms to financial resources, to simplify the receipt of loans and subsidies.

Another important area is the deep processing of fruits and vegetables. But so far the indicators in this direction are low. Only 20 percent of orchards and vineyards, 7 percent of vegetable fields have introduced intensive methods.

Therefore, 2,163 projects have been formed for implementation in the food industry. As a result of their implementation, imports of 25 types of food products will decrease, and exports will expand. More than 37 thousand people will be provided with jobs.

The head of state noted that the added value in the sphere can be easily increased by 3-4 times due to the deep processing of fruits and vegetables. Instructions were given to organize specialized food industry parks in Mirzaabad, Denau, Parkent, Urtachirchik, Urgench and Kuva districts.

The President separately touched upon the issue of digitalization of agriculture.

- Without digitalization, there will be no real statistics in the field. And without reliable information, agricultural services will not develop, farmers will not know when and what to plant, which gives more income. Therefore, this process needs to be accelerated, Shavkat Mirziyoyev said.

The task was set to complete 3 projects by the end of this year, and 4 projects next year, to fully digitalize land records, allocate subsidies, and monitor crop areas.

In general, the goal was to create 600,000 permanent jobs in the industry and increase exports to US$2 billion next year.