Cotton in Pakistan: How Nuclear Techniques are Helping the Textile Industry

Cotton, linen and silk are textiles associated with fashion and fashion capitals of the world, such as Paris, Milan, London and New York. Some of those textiles popular with designers are produced in Pakistan, where the textile industry contributes 8.5 per cent to the gross domestic product and accounts for 60 per cent of the country's exports. But climate extremes such as heat waves and increasing temperatures have been impacting the cotton industry, which has seen an unprecedented fall in yields.

The IAEA, in partnership with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), is working with local experts to develop and introduce new varieties of cotton that are more resilient and better adapted to the new climate reality in the country. The new varieties developed now account for 40 percent of all cotton produced, up from just 25 per cent two years ago and from non-existent yield in 2016.

'Year on year variation in yields of the cotton crop due to climate change is not only impacting the farming industry negatively, but it is also straining development of the entire cotton-based value chain in the region,' said Manzoor Hussain, Deputy Chief Scientist and cotton breeder at the Nuclear Institute for Agriculture and Biology (NIAB), in charge of the project in Pakistan. 'Agriculture is central to Pakistan's economy, and cotton has a significant role in driving the economy of the country. Through nuclear techniques, we can ensure that this economic area remains profitable.'