Animal and Veterinary Sciences | Collection | Published 2022-11-01
Following the breakup of the Soviet Union the agricultural sector in Uzbekistan has undergone a deep restructuring. Private ownership of land is currently prohibited by law, as is the use of land as collateral for receiving bank loans. However, several new laws enacted since 1992 have created favourable legislative conditions for a variety of types of farming. The most recent reforms of 2018/2019 aim at the establishment of private farm clusters based on contract farming, replacing the state procurement system. Currently there are 4.7 million dekhkan (smallholder) farmers with land plots of 0.35–0.5 ha and largely based on household labour. Thanks to the hard work of these farmers, livestock currently constitutes 40% of total Uzbekistan agricultural output. During the last two decades the number of cattle and sheep/goats has more than doubled. However, despite recent improvement in the agricultural economy there are some barriers restraining production efficiency of the agri-food sector such as a) weak access to finance, b) poor animal health due to weaknesses of the public and private veterinary services and poor animal feeding, c) inadequate supply of fodder due to the small amount of land which can be used to produce fodder (only 5%), and d) the cultural loss of experience in the agricultural and farming business after the demise of the Soviet era. Productivity of livestock could be the key for further income gains for families in rural areas as livestock-keeping activities contribute from 45% to almost 70% of family income depending on areas of the country considered. The promotion of more effective and viable veterinary services requires the creation of an enabling environment to encourage the private sector through provision of incentive packages such as access to better technologies and training; improving the budget allocation to facilitate provision of essential public animal health infrastructure; strengthening the capacity of Zoo-Vet Stations and establishing a reporting system such as Animal Identification Database to facilitate collection of information on veterinary drugs/vaccine performance.