"Planting" creates a better life and "weaving" creates a new future (jointly building the "the Belt and Road" - the first site) Textile | Agriculture | One Belt
Workers operate equipment in the knitting workshop of the Tajikistan Agricultural Textile Industry Park on the China Thailand New Silk Road.
Photo by our reporter Yan Huan
In Hatron Oblast, Tajikistan, brilliant flowers bloom from the valleys and spread all the way to the distance.
Due to its excellent light and thermal conditions, Hartlon Oblast has always been an important production area for long staple cotton in Tajikistan. Driven by the joint construction of the "the Belt and Road", Chinese enterprises have invested in the establishment of China Thailand Agricultural Company and China Thailand Textile Company, and built the largest and most comprehensive demonstration park in Central Asia - China Thailand New Silk Road Tajikistan Agricultural Textile Industrial Park. From cotton planting and leather processing to spinning, weaving, printing and dyeing, and garment manufacturing, industrial parks not only drive the improvement of cotton planting technology and the development of industrial models in Tajikistan, but also contribute to the industrial development of Tajikistan.
"The Chinese have brought new cotton varieties, planting techniques, and management experience"
Hartlon Oblast is located in the valley of the Vakhsh River and is one of the richest lands in Tajikistan, as well as the main area for cotton cultivation in the country. Although the land is fertile and the water source is sufficient, due to the long-term disrepair of water conservancy facilities, the local cotton yield per mu was once less than 100 kilograms, and the low level of agricultural modernization became a bottleneck for the development of local agriculture.
In response to the current situation of a large amount of abandoned wasteland in the local area, Zhongtai Agricultural Company has invested a lot of manpower, material resources, and financial resources to complete the development and improvement of wasteland and the upgrading and renovation of water conservancy facilities, transforming the wasteland into cotton planting fields. The company has also completed cotton field drip irrigation projects, plastic film processing, and achieved mechanization of the entire cotton planting process.
On the farm of Zhongtai Agricultural Company, 100000 acres of cotton fields are endless. The cotton fields are covered with insulation film, and underneath the film are tens of thousands of meters of drip irrigation pipes. From sowing, mulching, pipe laying, drip fertilization to final picking, all are managed mechanically. The general manager of the company, Wang Lijiang, said, "Tajikistan has high-quality natural resources. We have introduced advanced cotton planting technologies that are 'short, dense, early, and even' domestically to promote the modernization of Tajikistan's agriculture."
"Now is different from the past," said Aziklov, a villager from Wukaolai Village in Dangala District. The arrival of Chinese enterprises has shown local cotton farmers the appearance of modern cotton cultivation. "The Chinese have brought new cotton varieties, planting techniques, and management experience, which has suddenly increased our average yield per mu to 350 kilograms. At first, we couldn't believe it."
While promoting advanced agricultural technologies, the Chinese side has also trained a large number of modern agricultural talents for the local area. Saiti, who is 32 years old this year, joined China Thailand Agricultural Company as a driver in 2016. During his work, he self-taught Chinese and learned cotton planting techniques with the company's agricultural technicians. Now, Saiti is the deputy farm manager responsible for managing 500 hectares of cotton fields, with a monthly income three times that of before. "Chinese companies have changed my life, enabling me to send my younger brother to study in China. The unimaginable past has become a reality, and Chinese companies have brought us a brighter future."
"The industrial park provides impetus and guarantee for the sustainable development of Tajikistan's economy"
In the third phase of the China Thailand New Silk Road Tajikistan Agricultural Textile Industry Park's garment workshop, it is difficult not to be shocked by the clothing scene in front of people: hundreds of neatly arranged sewing machine operation tables, female workers skillfully cut and sew, and with the rumbling sound of the machines, colorful cotton fabrics quickly turn into long sleeved tops.
Shouheng Guli is an experienced technical backbone in the workshop. When she first arrived, she was completely clueless about textile and sewing techniques. With the careful help of Chinese masters, she is now the highest performing piece rate technician in the workshop and has also taken on the training of new employees. "This is the happiest and proudest thing I have ever done at work," she smiled shyly. The salaries and benefits of Chinese companies are very good, and many family and friends have followed her out of the family and come here to work.
When he saw Tao Haile, the security team leader of a textile workshop, he greeted the reporter with a smile and fluent Chinese from a distance. "I used to be just a shepherd without any technical experience." In 2015, he, who was diligent and eager to learn, was selected to China for training. In addition to key courses such as textile technology and mechanical operation, he also actively studies Chinese and strengthens communication with Chinese experts. In the past few years, Tao Haile has grown from a former shepherd to a technical backbone. "Chinese masters have no reservations about me, otherwise I wouldn't have grown so fast!"
The reporter saw in the textile workshop that although there were hundreds of machines working, the number of workers was very small. The Chairman of the Industrial Park, Chen Wang, introduced that the industrial park uses world-class fully automated production lines. "Previously, Tajikistan's cotton processing accounted for less than 10% of the country's cotton production. The establishment of industrial parks has increased the proportion of cotton processing to 15% -20% of the current level." He told reporters that the quality of these processed pure cotton yarns has reached the international first-class level, with over 90% sold to overseas markets, bringing tangible foreign exchange income to Tajikistan.
"We maintain close contact with Chinese enterprises and are also strengthening cooperation with the labor department to provide higher quality labor for enterprises. Chinese enterprises have become model enterprises in our textile industry. Akmar Sharipov, Director of the Light Industry Department of the Ministry of Industry of Tajikistan, said that the China Thailand New Silk Road Tajikistan Agricultural and Textile Industrial Park is of great significance to the development of the country's agricultural product processing industry and trade exports, and has become the largest exporter of foreign exchange in Tajikistan." The industrial park provides impetus and guarantee for the sustainable development of Tajikistan's economy, and also provides rich experience for the country's industrialization process. ".
"Thanks to Chinese companies, our lives are getting better and better."
Less than a 10 minute drive from the cotton fields of Zhongtai Agricultural Company, the fifth level water pump on the Lanchi River runs day and night, nourishing hundreds of thousands of people and vast farmland in Geely Warehouse, Hatron State. Eight years ago, this dilapidated dam was no longer operational, making the land that was originally lacking in rainwater even more barren and barren. Household water supply was impossible, and the lambs raised by the herders had no grass and could only eat camel thorns on dry land; Lack of water sources makes it difficult for agriculture to develop, and businesses are unwilling to invest. Local people's lives are becoming increasingly difficult, and young adults can only choose to travel far away and struggle to make a living.
"Everyone said that at that time, our 'specialties' in this area were loess and stones. The water pump on the dam had already been damaged, and no one knew how to repair it, nor did they have the money to repair it. Drinking water for residents became a big problem, and many people chose to work outside." Baidiyev Bachdule, the deputy station director of the pump station of Zhongtai Agricultural Company, was a former electrician. He joined the company in 2015 through a friend's introduction.
Without water, cotton cannot be grown. Zhongtai Agricultural Company is determined to repair the water pump. The Chinese side hired 6 local employees to repair the water pump and replace the pipeline, and finally made the fifth level water pump work normally.
"My family of more than ten people live nearby, thanks to Chinese companies, our lives are getting better and better. There are no trees on the road ahead, and the highest temperature in summer reaches 50 degrees Celsius. You can't even find a shady place when you go out. Look now, everything in front of you is green." Looking in the direction of Bach Duller's finger, the reporter still can't imagine the scene of no grass growing here in the past. Bahadur said, "In order to make a living, many local residents used to go to their relatives. After the water pump was repaired, everyone came back one after another, planting economic crops such as wheat and corn, and rebuilding houses."
At present, all five level water pumps are maintained and serviced by Zhongtai Agricultural Company. In order to save costs, employees from both China and Tajikistan worked together to find ways, such as purchasing waste materials and processing pump shafts themselves. Water resources are shared with local society, with 80% of the water given priority to local residents for domestic and irrigation purposes, and only 20% for self use by enterprises.
When it comes to these things, Li Xiao, a Chinese employee who has been rooted in Tajikistan with her husband for over 5 years, is very proud: "You haven't seen the scene in the village when Chuntian was releasing the floodgates - when the water was being released, the people waiting on both sides of the channel waved and shouted 'thank you'. That was the sincerity exchanged for sincerity."
