A Sustainable Development Strategy for the Uzbekistan Textile Industry: The Results of a SWOT-AHP Analysis

Abstract

Uzbekistan is paying great attention to the textile industry as an industry offering a traditional production advantage, coming to the conclusion that it is necessary to establish and implement effective policies. In Uzbekistan as in other developing countries, whereas there are many strategic directions and development strategies to be considered for key industries, investment resources are limited. Therefore, it is necessary to prioritize and to apply limited resources accordingly. Even though research on the textile industry in Uzbekistan is ongoing for a long time, most of the resultant literature concerns only general industrial trends and pertinent investment and advancement strategies. The present study examined sustainable, concrete, and effective development strategy directions for the Uzbekistan textile industry using strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analytic hierarchy process (AHP) model. The SWOT-AHP model was tested in a case study on Uzbekistan’s textile industry. In the case study, the results were presented in an illustrative way by utilizing the quantitative information achieved by the model. The results indicated that the weakness and opportunity (WO) strategy had the highest importance, and suggested accordingly that priority should be given to that strategy for Uzbekistan’s textile industry development. The results further suggested that the Uzbekistan government should endeavor to upgrade obsolescent technology and solve the problems of high-priced imported raw materials and workers’ low education level, which are weak points of the textile industry of that country. Also, Uzbekistan should gradually shift the industrial structure from raw cotton to finished textile exportation, which offers relatively high added economic value. To achieve this, the Uzbek government needs to promote joint ventures and strategic alliances with foreign companies wishing to enter the textile industry through foreign direct investment (FDI) schemes.

1. Introduction

According to the Korea Trade Investment Promotion Agency (KOTRA), agriculture, one of the largest segments of Uzbekistan’s economy, accounts for one-fifth of total gross domestic product (GDP) [1]. In contrast to the remarkable contraction of the agricultural economy of most Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) countries in past years, agricultural production in Uzbekistan grew greatly every year since the 2000 implementation of a strong agricultural development policy that includes, among other initiatives, an agricultural land improvement project to expand both cultivation area and irrigation facilities. Uzbekistan produces three million tons of cotton per year, of which 1–1.1 million tons is processed as cotton yarn. In addition, Uzbekistan is the sixth largest cotton producer and the fifth largest cotton exporter in the world, showing a well-developed structure concentrated on cotton, which gives it its high percentage of the international cotton market.

Textile production in recent decades increasingly moved from Europe and the United States to Southeast Asia, Central Asia, and South America. Among Central-Asian states, Uzbekistan is a major exporter of cotton fiber. Due to the expiration of the Multi Fiber Agreement (MFA) and the consequent cancellation of world quotas in 2005, competition in the world market became increasingly fierce. As a result, only those producers who supply high-quality products at a low cost can emerge as winners [2]. Against this backdrop, developing countries are doing everything they can to attract foreign technologies and investors while searching for their niche in the global market. The gains from attracting foreign investors are surely considerable for those countries that invested a lot in improving their textile industries [3]. Consequently, the Uzbekistan government is actively instituting programs to attract foreign investments into the textile industry. The principal intention of attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) in the textile sector is to engage foreign companies that are capable of producing high-quality, value-added products that use high-grade cotton fiber made in Uzbekistan.

Uzbekistan’s textile industry, as one of its most key national industries, has an important role to play in the development of the country’s economy. Since the textile industry’s profits lead to deepening and broadening of the national manufacturing system overall, its transformation from cotton exportation to manufacturing of goods will enhance the national economy’s capacity to insulate itself from instability in the commodities market [4]. The textile industry can also certainly alleviate the problems of unemployment and poverty in Uzbekistan by employing sizable numbers of under-skilled labor, especially from rural areas, and women [5]. Thus, the Uzbekistan government paid great attention to the textile industry and established sustainable development plans for its improvement. Additionally, it is making efforts to attract foreign investment and is pursuing privatization and private investment to accelerate the development of the textile industry by utilizing the benefits of rich cotton and cotton yarn, cheap labor and infrastructure resources (i.e., water, natural gas, electricity, etc.), and its domestic market (the largest population in Central Asia). Uzbekistan’s main products such as fabrics, textiles, and yarns steadily increased in production, although most of the production facilities are concentrated on the spinning process, to the detriment of knitting, dyeing, and processing, not to mention the garment-sewing sectors. Specifically, as of 2016, the textile industry produces 550,000 tons of cotton, about 480 million m² of fabric, about 100,000 tons of stockinet, 411 million garments, and 85 million pairs of hosiery [6]. The quality of cotton is somewhat lower than that of Sea Island cotton and Egyptian cotton in the West Indies system of the Bahamas, but it is considered to be superior to those of major competitors such as China, India, and Pakistan. It also has an advantage over India and Pakistan in terms of export competitiveness [1].

A number of studies on general textile industry trends and investment strategies for Uzbekistan were conducted. Some of them utilized strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analysis and suggested macroeconomic development directions and strategies for the Uzbekistan textile industry. SWOT analysis is a commonly used tool for analyzing internal and external environments in order to attain a systematic approach and support for a decision situation [7]. The internal and external factors deemed most important to an enterprise’s future, referred to as strategic factors, are summarized within the analysis. The final goal of a strategic planning process, of which SWOT is an early stage, is the development and adoption of a strategy that produces a good fit between internal and external factors. SWOT also can be used when a strategy alternative emerges suddenly and the decision context relevant to it has to be analyzed. However, conventional SWOT analysis has a disadvantage, which is the difficulty of measuring the priorities and importance of derived factors; as such, utilization of SWOT analysis is limited to the identification of sustainable and effective development strategies. As pointed out in Kurttila et al. [8], SWOT analysis provides no means of analytically determining the importance of factors or of assessing the fit between factors and decision alternatives, and it is regarded as a limitation of SWOT analysis application. In other words, the conventional studies on general textile industry trends and investment strategies for Uzbekistan using SWOT analysis are primary approaches for establishing strategies based on the strategy factors and do not provide qualitative examinations such as priority and importance among strategy factors. As concluded by Hill and Westbrook [9], SWOT analysis results are too often superficial and imprecise listings or incomplete qualitative examinations of internal and external factors. The further utilization of SWOT is, thus, based mainly on qualitative analysis, as well as the capabilities and expertise of the persons participating in the planning process.

The objective of this study was to investigate SWOT factors more systematically in order to improve the quantitative information basis of any proposed strategic directions for the Uzbekistan textile industry. This research suggests, based on its SWOT analytic hierarchy process (AHP) analysis, sustainable and effective development strategies for the Uzbekistan textile industry. For the SWOT-AHP analysis, SWOT provided the basic framework within which to perform the analysis of the decision situation in the Uzbekistan textile industry, and the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) analysis assisted in enabling the SWOT analysis to be carried out more analytically, specifically by determining the priorities for the factors included in the SWOT analysis and making them commensurable. The AHP enables decision-makers to represent the simultaneous interaction of many factors in a complex, unstructured situation. It helps them to identify and set priorities on the basis of their objectives and their knowledge and experience of each problem [10]. In order to apply the SWOT-AHP analysis to the Uzbekistan textile industry, we firstly took a look at the SWOT-analysis-based research that was carried out in broadly examining the textile industry in Uzbekistan. Then, the SWOT matrix for the Uzbekistan textile industry development strategy was established by integrating, classifying, and adjusting the SWOT analysis results derived from the previous studies. The AHP analysis was used to quantify the importance and priority of the components of the SWOT analysis. In particular, in order to increase the validity and effectiveness of the research by duplicating the questionnaire to the same company, we surveyed 75 textile companies in Uzbekistan by contacting experts in each company to collect data for the AHP analysis. On this basis, we were able to provide concrete, effective, and sustainable strategy directions reflective of rational selection and prioritization within a context of limited resources. The main advantage of the proposed approach and the difference from the other relevant research lies in the quantitative examination of the SWOT factors by applying AHP in SWOT analysis and the inclusion of the preferences of the decision-maker in planning and implementing the development strategies. The rest of this paper is organized as follows: Section 2 reviews the precedent research on the textile industry in Uzbekistan and demonstrates the construction of the SWOT matrix. Section 3 explains the present research design and analysis methods. Section 4 discusses the AHP analysis results and strategy alternatives. Section 5 summarizes our work.

2. Background Research

2.1. Literature Review and SWOT Matrix Composition

The literature review consists of two parts: general studies on the textile industry in Uzbekistan and SWOT-analysis-based development strategies for Uzbekistan’s textile industry. Several studies on the textile industry in Uzbekistan were conducted. Davronov [11] and Nargiza [12] examined the export and market potential of the Uzbek textile industry. They argued that the textile industry plays an important role not only in producing non-food consumer goods but also in fulfilling a social need in promoting the creation of new jobs. Djanibekov et al. [13] analyzed the pros and cons of Uzbek cotton, and emphasized that the production of cotton is a strategic centerpiece of the economy of Uzbekistan, which ranks second among world cotton exporters. As noted in Rudenko [14], according to historical evidence, cotton was cultivated in what is now Uzbekistan since the fifth or sixth century. Maurizio et al. [3] explored cotton taxation in Uzbekistan. Based on several calculation methods, they concluded that Uzbek cotton is too heavily taxed. Ergashxodjaeva et al. [15] focused on an evaluation of the textile clothing sector and clustering capabilities in Uzbekistan. They determined that the development of the light industry goods market depends primarily on the overall competitive environment in the industry and the factors that shape it. Mamadiev [16] investigated the strengths and weaknesses of the textile industry in Uzbekistan. He mainly provided specific data on the textile industry and provided a descriptive analysis of each factor. He came to the conclusion that the following problems hinder textile industry development: outdated technology, a low utilization ratio, a high tax burden, an unstable financial situation for enterprises, the absence of financial incentives between farmers and cotton-fiber-producing plants, and a lack of FDI. Revetria et al. [17] focused on the necessity of rationally employing existing capacities and resources and the significance of the textile industry (and light industries generally) to the national economy. Also, some of the aspects of developmental strategies were discussed, and aspects of foreign countries’ advantages were analyzed. Furthermore, institutional, production, and technical capabilities for further development were identified, and the effective use of present resources, as well as key means of stimulating productivity, was identified.

Several studies applied SWOT analysis to suggest development strategies for Uzbekistan’s textile industry. Based on our review of this literature, we established a SWOT matrix by classifying, organizing, and integrating the SWOT factors identified in those studies. In Knowledge Sharing Programs funded by KORTA and the Korea Development Institute (KDI), Uzbekistan and South Korea discuss all relevant economic areas such as special economic zones, public policy, and industrial development strategies. Especially, in Knowledge Sharing Programs held in 2016 and 2017, SWOT analysis and comparative analysis were utilized to suggest development strategies for Uzbekistan’s textile industry [4]. The strengths of Uzbekistan’s textile industry lie in its rich materials (raw cotton and cotton yarns), cheap labor, low-cost energy sources such as electricity and gas, a large domestic market (32 million consumers), access to the CIS and European markets, duty exemptions and tax benefits for raw materials, and an organization that can implement strong textile policies. The drawbacks of Uzbekistan’s textile industry include its weak basis for chemical fibers, which are essential given the recent trend toward functional textiles in the global market, and its relatively low-tech and obsolescent manufacturing base focusing on the exportation of cheap, general-purpose articles. Other issues include weaknesses in the logistics environment in terms of duration and cost due to its inland location, government control and lack of cooperation among branches, lack of water and low mechanization rate in the cotton industry, and a dependency on importation of materials due to the unavailability of local materials for apparel production. Opportunity factors include expansion of new fashion trends through global sourcing, production with buyer compliance, possible growth of the high-potential CIS market, entry to the Eurasia Economic Cooperation, and the United States of America (USA)’s regulations on Chinese exports. Threats include environmental policies and CSR reinforcement in advanced countries, technical subordination by advanced countries, and mid-to-low-price market encroachment from China and Vietnam. Tursunov [18] investigated a development strategy for the textile industry by means of a SWOT analysis. The textile industry in Uzbekistan has a high but thus far unrealized potential. It has considerable competitive advantages both in the domestic and international markets through the possessing of local raw materials. The high potential of textile industry development, in fact, could be one of the “growth points” for the entire national economy. However, government policy prioritizing exportation of cotton fiber, along with minimization of its processing and exportation of ready-made products, leads to considerable risk for the national economy due to instability of world prices for cotton fiber, especially during periods of their sharply falling prices. Textile and garment suppliers from Uzbekistan have advantages and disadvantages in the market. Their main advantage is the existence of a raw material base in Uzbekistan, especially high-quality cotton, which gives an opportunity for further development and expansion of textile manufacturing. Uzbekistan produces more than one million tons of cotton fiber per year, but only a fraction of that is used by domestic textile enterprises. The proximity of raw materials sharply reduces transport costs and time for delivery to enterprises. A no less important advantage is Uzbekistan’s labor cost, which is cheaper than in rival countries. The literacy rate in Uzbekistan is almost universal at 98%, and workers are generally well educated and trained. Even though most local technical and managerial training does not meet international business standards, foreign companies engaged in production report that Uzbek workers learn quickly and work effectively. Furthermore, as Uzbekistan leases crude oil and natural gas, it has some advantage in resource costs over rival countries such as China and Turkey. As for the cost of water in Uzbekistan, while water use in the textile industry is not so extensive, the relatively low water price affords some additional competitive advantages to the industry. Tillyakhodjaev [19] provided marketing strategic planning for an Uzbek textile and clothing supply chain by SWOT analysis. The author recommended that the textile and clothing supply chain be segmented into high- and low-profit steps: retailers and brands should keep high-profit steps such as innovation, marketing, and retailing, while low-profit steps, such as sourcing raw materials, production and assembly, finishing, and packing, should be outsourced to mid-chain suppliers and low-cost producers worldwide. Indeed, global supply chains established labor-intensive exports from low-cost locations, especially Far East regions. The result was enormous growth in the number of producers and, thus, increasing competition.

The SWOT analysis results of the abovementioned studies are summarized in Table A1, Table A2, Table A3 and Table A4 (Appendix A).

2.2. Concept of AHP Analysis and Outline for Applying AHP in SWOT Analysis

AHP is the decision-making methodology which reflects the experiences and intuition of respondents through pairwise comparison of the factors forming the hierarchical structure in decision-making. It creates a pairwise comparison matrix, utilizes the eigenvalue method from its matrix, and estimates priority vector per a hierarchy. Numerical techniques are used to derive quantitative values from the verbal comparisons. The advantages of AHP include its ability to make both qualitative and quantitative decision attributes commensurable, and its flexibility with regard to the setting of objectives. Subjective preferences, expert knowledge, and objective information can all be included in the same decision analysis. To solve the matters concerning the decision-making and judgment of importance of the experts, the AHP analysis has to go through four steps of process: (1) establishing the hierarchical model with factors; (2) conducting pairwise comparison among factors; (3) calculating the relative weighted value of factors; and (4) integrating the relative weighted value in evaluating factors. In the first step, a matrix with pairwise comparison sub-hierarchy factors using nine scales is established. If the number of components in the hierarchy is n, the number of pairs occurring in the pairwise comparison is n(n − 1)/2. If the importance is defined as $v_a$ by pairwise comparison of n factors composed in one hierarchy, $r_{ab}$ and $v_a$ in the pairwise comparison matrix are calculated as $r_{ab}=v_a/v_b \left(a, b = 1,2,3,\dots ,n\right)$. Only the most important concepts of the AHP theory are presented here. For more details on the AHP analysis, readers are referred to References [10,20].

Basically, the results of an AHP analysis are the overall priorities of decision alternatives. The basic concept in utilizing AHP within a SWOT analysis is to systematically evaluate SWOT factors and commensurate their intensities. AHP’s advantages, i.e., a systematic approach to decision problems and commensurateness, can be regarded as valuable characteristics in SWOT analysis. Additional value from a SWOT analysis can be achieved by performing pairwise comparisons between SWOT factors and analyzing them by means of the eigenvalue technique as applied in AHP. This offers a good basis for examining the present or anticipated situation, or a new strategy alternative, more comprehensively. After carrying out these comparisons, decision-makers will have new quantitative information about the decision-making situation, for example, whether there is a specific weakness requiring all the attention, or if the company is expected to be faced with future threats exceeding the company’s combined opportunities.

3. Research Design

The research design proceeds in two steps: (1) SWOT matrix composition; (2) SWOT-AHP analysis and sustainable development strategy suggestions.

The first step, SWOT matrix composition, analyzes the previous studies on SWOT analysis for the textile industry of Uzbekistan, and extracts their SWOT factors for SWOT analysis a little more widely. The extracted SWOT factors are refined through deduplication, classification, and consolidation and grouped into four SWOT groups: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats, in order to compose the SWOT matrix. in particular, brainstorming and consultation with experts working in the textile industry, academia, and related organizations in Uzbekistan was conducted to ensure the validity of the SWOT matrix.

The second step, SWOT-AHP analysis and sustainable development strategy suggestions, applies pairwise comparisons to capture the weights of each SWOT group, and derives the relative priorities of each factor within the SWOT group by applying AHP. Based on the result of the AHP analysis, we suggest analytical and sustainable development strategies in terms of four strategy divisions: strength opportunity (SO), strength threat (ST), weakness opportunity (WO), and weakness threat (WT), according to the priorities of SWOT groups and factors.

The AHP is a mathematical method developed by Saaty [20,21] for analysis of complex decision problems with multiple criteria. The AHP is basically a general theory of measurement based on some mathematical and psychological foundations, and it can deal with qualitative attributes, as well as quantitative ones. The results of an AHP analysis are the overall (global) priorities of decision alternatives. The idea of utilizing AHP within a SWOT framework is to systematically evaluate SWOT factors and determine their intensities. The advantages of AHP application can be regarded as valuable characteristics of SWOT analysis. Additional value from a SWOT analysis can be achieved by performing pairwise comparisons between SWOT factors and analyzing them by means of the eigenvalue technique as applied in AHP. This offers a good basis for examining the present or anticipated situation, or a new strategy alternative, more comprehensively. After carrying out these comparisons, decision-makers will have new quantitative information about the decision-making situation, for example, whether there is a specific weakness requiring complete attention, or if the company is expected to be faced with future threats exceeding its combined opportunities. Another example is that when it is observed that one single weakness is larger than all of the strengths, the strategy chosen could perhaps be aimed at eliminating this weakness. Similarly, choosing a new strategy should probably not be based merely on opportunities and omitting existing threats if they are of same magnitude.

The present SWOT-AHP analysis proceeded in three stages as shown in Figure 1. The first stage established development strategies for the Uzbekistan textile industry, the second stage set four SWOT groups, and the third stage set four factors for each SWOT group (16 factors in total). Prior to the AHP analysis, a questionnaire-based survey of experts from Uzbekistan textile companies was conducted by meeting the experts directly and collecting survey data from them to increase the effectiveness of the AHP analysis. Based on the survey results, we analyzed the importance (weight) of each SWOT group and derived the relative priorities of each factor within the SWOT group only for data with a consistency ratio (CR) of 0.1 or less. As a result of the AHP, priority was assigned based on the importance of SWOT factors, and a concrete and effective development strategy for each type and size of Uzbek textile company was presented.

Figure 1. Three stage of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOT) analytic hierarchy process (AHP) analysis and number of factors in each stage.

Since the questionnaire-based survey was conducted to obtain priorities of factors within each SWOT group through AHP analysis, the question configuration followed the principles of Reference [10], the developer of AHP analysis. The crux of the matter in the question configuration is the number of factors for performing pairwise comparisons in each SWOT group, because a large number of comparison factors makes it difficult for the respondent to maintain concentration. Given that Saaty [10] emphasized that the number of pairwise comparison elements should not exceed a maximum of 7 ± 2, the number in this study was six (= 4(4 − 1)/2), because the SWOT-AHP matrix consisted of four SWOT groups and each group contained four factors, as shown in Figure 1. Therefore, the questionnaire for SWOT-AHP analysis consisted of 30 pairwise comparison questions (= 6 × 5 pairs of five matrices); that is, the evaluation was performed five times for six pairwise comparisons in the questionnaire. In general, in the questionnaire configuration for the AHP analysis, when the number of questions is large, the respondent’s input can be increased and their concentration decreased, so that it becomes difficult to maintain consistency of responses. The questionnaire of this study evaluated the relative importance on a nine-point scale, which was proven to be the most useful for AHP analysis (Saaty, 2007). Table 1 shows the combinations of pairwise comparisons of the questionnaires as evaluated on the nine-point scale.

Table 1. Combinations of pairwise comparisons in stages 2 and 3. SWOT—strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.

Stages	Combinations of Pairwise Comparisons
Stage 2 (6 comparison questions)	$\left(S : W\right), \left(S : O\right), \left(S : T\right), \left(W : O\right), \left(W : T\right), \left(O : T\right)$
Stage 3 (24 comparison questions)	$\left(S_1, S_2\right), \left(S_1, S_3\right), \left(S_1, S_4\right), \left(S_2, S_3\right), \left(S_2, S_4\right), \left(S_3, S_4\right)$
	$\left(W_1, W_2\right), \left(W_1, W_3\right), \left(W_1, W_4\right), \left(W_2, W_3\right), \left(W_2, W_4\right), \left(W_3, W_4\right)$
	$\left(O_1, O_2\right), \left(O_1, O_3\right), \left(O_1, O_4\right), \left(O_2, O_3\right), \left(O_2, O_4\right), \left(O_3, O_4\right)$
	$\left(T_1, T_2\right), \left(T_1, T_3\right), \left(T_1, T_4\right), \left(T_2, T_3\right), \left(T_2, T_4\right), \left(T_3, T_4\right)$

4. Empirical Analysis and Sustainable Development Strategies Proposal

4.1. SWOT Matrix Composition

The procedure of the SWOT analysis consisted of (1) identifying opportunities and treats as the external environment part, (2) identifying strengths and weaknesses as the internal environment part, and (3) composing a SWOT matrix by classifying the factors for the opportunity, threat, strength, and weakness groups in the external and internal environment parts. The SWOT matrix for the analysis of the Uzbekistan textile industry was composed by extracting the SWOT factors for each SWOT group from the previous studies on SWOT analyses of the textile industry in Uzbekistan, the factors of which are summarized in Table A1, Table A2, Table A3 and Table A4 (Appendix A). As aggregated, integrated, and classified from Table A1, Table A2, Table A3 and Table A4 (Appendix A), the SWOT factors are summarized in Table A5 (Appendix B). In that Table A6 and Table A7 (Appendix C), note that we classified the SWOT factors that appeared three times or more, and determined the final factors to be applied to this study through three rounds of expert discussions and adjustment processes, thereby deriving the SWOT matrix shown in Table 2.

Table 2. SWOT matrix for Uzbekistan textile industry.

S (Strength)	W (Weakness)
Cheap highly skilled labor cost Low utility prices and cheap raw materials Government support, benefits, and incentives Advantages in strategic proximity to huge market	People are undereducated Low technical level Imported materials are expensive Weaknesses in logistics environment
O (Opportunity)	T (Threat)
Development of manufactured textile goods instead of cotton fiber Possible growth of foreign market Expansion of new fashion trends Favorable conditions for foreign investments	Fashion market with rapid design change Growing competition because of new entrants to the industry Reduction of Uzbekistan’s major textile-product-importing countries Growing requirement for trade in advanced countries

4.2. SWOT-AHP Analysis

For the AHP analysis, we composed the three-stage hierarchy SWOT-AHP model shown in Figure 2. The first stage was the ultimate goal of establishing the development strategies for the Uzbekistan textile industry, and the second stage was composed of the four groups of the SWOT matrix: strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats. The third stage was composed of 16 factors, which are the four factors for each SWOT group.

Figure 2. Hierarchy SWOT-AHP analysis model.

The questionnaire-based survey, which consisted of 30 pairwise comparison questions, was conducted for the SWOT-AHP analysis. To maintain the consistency of the survey results, we distributed 100 questionnaires to experts such as managers and executives in textile companies located in 12 regions of Uzbekistan including Tashkent, from 23 July to 25 August 2018. The textile companies were divided into three groups: foreign, joint venture, and local. Most of the survey respondents had more than 20 years of experience in the textile industry. Seventy-five of the 100 questionnaires were collected, and 73 with a consistency ratio of 0.1 or less were used for the survey analysis to maintain logical consistency. The consistency test results and the types of survey respondent companies are summarized in Table A1 and Table A2 (Appendix A), while Table 3 and Table 4 show the results for the distributed and returned status of questionnaires and the return status by the 12 regions, respectively.

Table 3. Distributed and returned status of questionnaires.

Section	Division	Questionnaires
		Distribution	Returned	Used
Total		100	75	73
Group 1	Foreign Company	20	14	14
Group 2	Joint Venture	20	15	15
Group 3	Local Company	60	46	44

Table 4. Returned status of questionnaires by 12 regions.

Region	Returned	Region	Returned
Tash-Tashkent	12	Nav-Navoi	5
Nam-Namangan	8	Sur-Surkhondarya	1
Sam-Samarkand	9	Nuk-Nukus	4
Buk-Bukhara	9	Kash-Kashkadarya	7
Anj-Andijon	2	Kho-Khorazm	8
Syr-Syrdarya	3	Jiz-Jizzakh	7

The Expert Choice 2000 program, which is considered to be the most accurate implementation of a mathematical analysis algorithm consisting of matrices and vectors of AHP analysis, was used to derive the relative priorities of each factor within the SWOT group. In the data input for pairwise comparison, the numerical mode was used among the three evaluation modes (verbal, graphical, numerical) because it is the most suitable in terms of the efficiency of inputting matrix coding data created by the survey results of this study. The distributive mode was used to calculate the weight (priority) based on the eigenvectors, because it is generally applied for weight calculation. The weights for importance analysis were calculated by dividing the L (local) weight, representing the element weight in the independent node in the SWOT, by the G (global) weight, representing the importance of the element reflecting the weight of the upper layer in the whole layering model. Table 5 shows the number of returned questionnaires for the three questionnaire groups according to the consistency ratio. Table 6 summarizes the consistency of the overall SWOT matrix and each SWOT stage for questionnaire responses with a consistency ratio of 0.1 or less.

Table 5. Number of questionnaire responses according to consistency ratio.

Section	Division	CR (Consistency Ratio)
		Total	Under 0.1	0.1–0.2	Over 0.2
Total		75	73	1	1
Group 1	Foreign Company	14	14	0	0
Group 2	Joint Venture	15	15	0	0
Group 3	Local Company	46	44	1 (0.14)	1 (0.55)

Table 6. Results of verified consistency of integrated data.

Section	Overall	Stage 2 (4 × 4 Matrix)	Stage 3 (4 × 4 Matrix)
Total (Integrated)	0.00	M1	M2	M3	M4	M5
		0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
Group 1 (Foreign Company)	0.00	M1	M2	M3	M4	M5
		0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00	0.00
Group 2 (Joint Venture)	0.01	M1	M2	M3	M4	M5
		0.00	0.01	0.01	0.01	0.00
Group 3 (Local Company)	0.00	M1	M2	M3	M4	M5
		0.00	0.01	0.01	0.00	0.00

After the relative importances among the SWOT groups were evaluated, experts in Uzbekistan’s textile industry evaluated the importances for the strength and weakness groups in the internal environment attribute as 0.254 and 0.277, and the importances for the opportunities and threat groups in the external environment attribute as 0.259 and 0.209, respectively, as shown in Figure 3. In other words, we can say that Uzbekistan’s textile industry experts evaluated the importances of the SWOT groups in the following order: (1) complement or reduce internal environment weaknesses; (2) take advantage of external environmental opportunities; (3) strengthen and utilize internal strengths; (4) mitigate or eliminate threats.

Figure 3. Relative importance for SWOT groups.

In the results for the analyses of the priorities for the relative importances (G-weights) of the SWOT factors, the $W_2$ (low technical level) factor of the weakness group had the highest importance at 0.12, and the $S_3$ (government support, benefits, and incentives) factor of the strength group and the $O_4$ (favorable conditions for foreign investment) factor of the opportunity group both had the second highest importance at 0.088. The $S_2$ (low utility prices and cheap raw material) factor of the strength group and the $O_1$ (development of manufactured textile goods instead of cotton fiber) factor of the opportunity group both had the third highest importance at 0.07, while the $W_3$ (imported material is expensive) factor and the $W_1$ (people are undereducated) factor of the weakness group had the fourth highest importances at 0.064 and 0.063, respectively. Finally, the $T_2$ (growing competition because of new entrants to the industry) factor of the threat group had the sixth highest importance. To summarize, there were three factors in the weakness group, two factors in the strength group, two factors in the opportunity group, and one factor in the threat group among the top eight factors with a significance level greater than 0.06. In the results of the analyses of the L-weights for the SWOT factors, $S_3$, $W_2$, $O_4$, and $T_2$ were the most important factors in each SWOT group at 36%, 37%, 34%, and 29%, respectively. Table 7 summarizes the L-weights (priority of the factor within the group), G-weights (overall priority of the factor), and ranks for each SWOT factor.

Table 7. Weights and ranks for each SWOT factor. L—local; G—global.

Factors	L-Weight	Rank	G-Weight	Rank	Factors	L-Weight	Rank	G-Weight	Rank
$S_1$	0.222	3	0.057	8	$W_1$	0.228	3	0.063	5
$S_2$	0.276	2	0.070	3	$W_2$	0.367	1	0.102	1
$S_3$	0.346	1	0.088	2	$W_3$	0.232	2	0.064	4
$S_4$	0.156	4	0.040	13	$W_4$	0.173	4	0.048	11
$O_1$	0.270	2	0.070	3	$T_1$	0.246	2	0.051	9
$O_2$	0.222	3	0.058	7	$T_2$	0.285	1	0.060	6
$O_3$	0.168	4	0.044	12	$T_3$	0.235	3	0.049	10
$O_4$	0.339	1	0.088	2	$T_4$	0.235	3	0.049	10

4.3. Sustainable Development Strategies

The results for the L-weight and G-weight for each factor, listed in Table 7, suggest that it is necessary to complement weaknesses such as $W_2$, $W_3$, and $W_1$, strengthen strengths such as $S_3$ and $S_2$, utilize opportunistic factors such as $O_4$ and $O_1$, and reduce threat factors such as $T_2$. Based on the results of the SWOT-AHP analysis, we could construct sustainable strategies for the development of the textile industry in Uzbekistan by using the SO strategy for utilizing strengths and opportunities, the ST strategy for using strengths and overcoming threats, the WO strategy for complementing weaknesses and utilizing opportunities, and the WT strategy for complementing weaknesses and overcoming threats, as shown in Table 8.

Table 8. Strategic alternatives by SWOT-AHP analysis results.

Internal Environment		S	W
		$S_1$(0.057), $S_2$(0.070)	$W_1$(0.063), $W_2$(0.102)
External Environment		$S_3$(0.088), $S_4$(0.040)	$W_3$(0.064), $W_4$(0.048)
O	$O_1$(0.070), $O_2$(0.058)	$S_2\left(S_3, S_2\right)+O_2\left(O_4,O_1\right)$	$W_3\left(W_2, W_3, W_1\right) + O_2\left(O_4,O_1\right)$
	$O_3$(0.044), $O_4$(0.088)	SO Strategy	WO Strategy
T	$T_1$(0.051), $T_2$(0.060)	ST Strategy	WT Strategy
	$T_3$(0.049), $T_4$(0.049)	$S_2\left(S_3, S_2\right)+T_1\left(T_2\right)$	$W_3\left(W_2, W_3, W_1\right)+T_1\left(T_2\right)$

Table 9 shows the development strategies according to the SO, ST, WO, and WT strategy divisions. In the strength group, $S_3$ and $S_2$ had relatively high importance, and, in the opportunity group, $O_4$ and $O_1$ had relatively high importance. Therefore, it is necessary to utilize the advantages of the Uzbekistan government’s policy support and incentives, as well as cheap raw materials and utilities, for the SO strategy. On the other hand, since Uzbekistan is favorable for investment by foreign companies, and the textile industry is developing from textile production to cotton textile manufacturing, it is necessary for the Uzbekistan government to establish a detailed strategy to capture opportunities for business diversification.

Table 9. Development strategies according to strategy division.

Division	Development Strategies
SO	Utilizing the advantages of the Uzbek government’s policy support and incentives, as well as cheap raw materials and utilities. Establishing specific strategies for business diversification in the context of the textile industry being developed from cotton-oriented to textile manufacturing.
ST	A strategy that can maintain competitive advantage through cost or differentiation advantage is needed. A differentiated preparation for competition in the textile industry due to new market entrants.
WO	Actively pursuing joint ventures with foreign companies wishing to make foreign direct investment (FDI) or strategic alliance in the technology sector, and eliminating weaknesses, while maintaining and utilizing the opportunity factors.
WT	Improving the low level of technology, high importation of raw materials and low education level of people, which are weak points of Uzbekistan textile industry. Preparing for intensifying competition within the textile industry.

In the threat group, $T_2$ had a relatively high importance. Thus, Uzbekistan should be prepared to take advantage of the government’s policy support and incentives, which are the strengths of Uzbekistan’s textile industry, and to utilize cheap raw materials and utilities, while at the same time making concrete plans to prepare for competition in the textile industry due to the continuous increase of new market entrants for the ST strategy. Therefore, establishment of a strategy that can maintain competitive advantage through cost or differentiated quality and service in the textile field is essential.

In the weakness group, $W_2$, $W_3$, and $W_1$ had relatively high importance. Therefore, government policy should be emphasized to improve the low technology level, the low-income raw material, and the low education level of people for the WO strategy. As mentioned of the SO and ST strategies, it is necessary to improve the weaknesses and to face the external environmental situation with emphasis on the cotton production business mainly based on raw material cultivation. Thus, concrete and detailed diversification strategies should be developed. The Uzbekistan textile industry should actively pursue joint ventures with foreign companies wishing to make foreign direct investment (FDI) or strategic alliances in the technology sector and, through this, eliminate weaknesses, while maintaining and utilizing the opportunity factors.

Finally, the WT strategy is to complement $W_2$, $W_3$, and $W_1$, which are the most important weakness factors, and to eliminate $T_2$, which is one of the most importance threat factors. In other words, as mentioned in the WO and ST strategies, the goals should be to improve the low level of technology, the high importation of raw materials and the low education level of people, which are weak points of the Uzbekistan textile industry, and to prepare for intensifying competition within the textile industry.

5. Concluding Remarks

Uzbekistan’s textile industry, which is a representative national industry, is pursuing sustainable development policies while constantly evolving and showing higher cotton productivity. In recent years, the Uzbekistan government promoted the development of the textile industry with abundant raw cotton and cotton yarn, as well as cheap labor and infrastructure resources (water, natural gas, electricity, etc.); Uzbekistan has a domestic market with the largest population in Central Asia, and enjoys proximity to the CIS market, which are the most important factors for the attraction of FDI. This study analyzed the importance and priorities of internal and external environmental factors for the establishment and implementation of strategies for the development of the Uzbekistan textile industry based on realistic situation perceptions. The main difference in the findings of this research from the other relevant research was in that it conducted the quantitative examination of the SWOT and provided the preferences of the decision-maker in planning and implementing the development strategies for Uzbekistan. Specifically, we took a look at the SWOT-analysis-based research that was carried out in broadly examining the textile industry in Uzbekistan. Then, a SWOT matrix for an Uzbekistan textile industry development strategy was established by integrating, classifying, and adjusting the SWOT analysis results derived from the previous studies. AHP analysis was utilized to quantify the importances and priorities of the components of the SWOT analysis. On that basis, this research provided concrete, effective, and sustainable strategy directions reflective of rational selection and prioritization within a context of limited resources. This research might be meaningful in suggesting the basis of the establishment of a viable strategy for the development of the textile industry in Uzbekistan.

Based on the results of the study, it was possible to construct strategies for the development of the Uzbekistan textile industry from a practical viewpoint. The overall strategy comprised SO strategies to utilize strengths and opportunities, ST strategies to overcome threats and complement weaknesses, WO strategies to take advantage of opportunities, and WT strategies to overcome weaknesses and avoid threats. Further AHP analysis showed that the WO strategy had the highest importance, and suggested accordingly that priority should be given to the WO strategy for the development of Uzbekistan’s textile industry. Based on the SWOT-AHP analysis, we could say that the Uzbek government should pay attention to improving the low level of technology, the high price of imported raw materials, and the workers’ low education level, which are the weak points of the textile industry of Uzbekistan. In addition, the Uzbek government should gradually shift the industrial structure from raw cotton to finished textile exportation, which offers relatively high added economic value. To achieve this, the Uzbek government needs to promote joint ventures and strategic alliances with foreign companies wishing to enter the textile industry through FDI schemes.

The limitations of this study were its examination of various components of SWOT attributes through a literature review. Also, the AHP analysis limited the number of components per attribute to four, taking into account the fact that a greater number of components to be evaluated would make it more difficult to maintain logical consistency of responses. Future research will be more meaningful in analyzing the importances and priorities of the AHP and in further studying, with a structured model, the causal relationships among the key factors impacting the development of Uzbekistan’s textile industry. Future research will be conducted to show how three groups (foreign company, joint venture, local company) of textile companies face difference situations and to discuss what major factors influence each group and how different geographical regions of each company have different strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats.