September 20, 2002

African Franc Zone:  Cotton Regions Dry

West and central Africa have experienced insufficient rainfall in several cotton producing regions.  Harvest begins next month and will continue until the end of December.  Last year, the Franc Zone harvested a 4.49 million bales of lint.  This year’s crop is forecast at 3.99 million bales, down  0.5 million bales or 11 percent (Franc Zone production). 

Francophone Africa or the cotton “Franc Zone” of west and central Africa includes the following nine countries, in order of raw cotton production from last year: Mali, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'Ivoire, Cameroon, Chad, Togo, Senegal, and Central African Republic (Figure 1, Cotton Belt). Most cotton in the Franc Zone is grown within the Sudanian (600-900mm annual rainfall) and Sudanian-Guinean (900-1200mm annual rainfall) zones, with growing seasons greater than 120 days.  In general, cotton is grown as a rainfed crop, making cotton production highly dependent on seasonal rainfall.  Other cropping systems within the Franc Zone cotton belt include maize, sorghum, millet, vegetables, cowpeas, and rice.

Figure 1. Franc Zone Cotton Belt in West and Central Africa

Cotton within the Franc Zone is planted from May-July and harvested from October-December. Rainfall this year has been near average for the coastal countries of Cote d’Ivoire, Benin, and Togo.  Lint production for these countries is expected to be near their respective five-year averages.  However, four of the six main producers--Mali, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, and Chad--have received below-average average rainfall in parts of their cotton regions, and production is forecast to be less than last year’s crop (Figure 2).  In addition, a severe drought has hit Senegal, a minor Franc Zone cotton producer, which probably will reduce Senegal’s cotton production to low levels experienced in 1998 and 1999. 

Table 1 summarizes current USDA estimates, which are largely based on in-country reports, FAS attaché reports, field travel, news wires, agro-meteorology data, and nearly real-time satellite imagery (Rainfall and NDVI analysis).  Nigeria is also included in the table because Nigeria is a major cotton producer for West Africa.  Annual FAS attaché reports for cotton in Nigeria and Cote d’Ivoire are prepared in May or June of each year.  

Figure 2.  Drought Pockets within Major Cotton Regions

Summary Production Estimates 

Country Summaries

Benin:  Rainfall has been average, but area planted is lower than last year.  Benin’s cotton belt extends from the central to northern parts of the country and Benin produced a record of 800,000 bales of lint last year.  Cotton is Benin’s main export.  The state-owned cotton marketing company, Societe nationale pour la promotion agricole (SONAPRA), is slated to be privatized in the near future.    

Burkina Faso:  The cotton region in the south-central part of the country is suffering from low and erratic rainfall. Regional droughts are occurring in the northern, eastern, and central regions.  Water rationing has begun in the capital, Ouagadougou, where three major reservoirs have dried up. Most cotton is grown in the southwest, where the soils are generally more fertile, rainfall more abundant, and growing seasons longer.  The south-west also includes the Mouhoun Region, which is regarded as Burkina Faso’s breadbasket due to its high agricultural production.  Cotton is the mainstay of commercial agriculture, providing livelihoods to about two million people.  Depressed world prices are putting severe financial pressures on the cotton parastatal, the Societe des fibres et textiles (SOFITEX), earmarked for eventual privatization.

Cameroon:  Drought has plagued the northern part of Cameroon’s cotton belt since May, when cotton seeds were sown.  Marketing, collection and supply of inputs and fertilizers are still organized by the state-owned cotton monopoly, Societe nationale de developpement du coton (SODECOTON), but privatization is scheduled for this year.  There are fears that the privatization of SODECOTON may introduce disruption in the cotton sector in coming years, as experienced in other African cotton-producing countries. Cotton is currently a main source of cash income for about 320,000 farmers in the north.

Central African Republic (CAR):  Rainfall has been reliable this year and typically is reliable for the cotton belt of CAR which extends into the savanna zone of southern Chad and northern Cameroon.  CAR is one the smallest cotton producers for the Franc Zone, but cotton is one of the main cash crops for nearly 200,000 families.  The Compagnie francaise pour le developpement de la fibre textile (CFDT, recently renamed Dagis) withdrew from the CAR’s cotton parastatal, Societe cotonniere centrafricaine (SOCOCA), after the company accumulated losses and payments to farmers were disrupted. SOCOCA nevertheless completed the rehabilitation of a ginning plant at Grimari in Ouaka prefecture and the construction of a new plant at Bossangoa, in Ouham prefecture. Insecurity and lack of inputs have also undermined cotton development.  In addition, the high transport costs imposed by the CAR's landlocked situation make export crops even more vulnerable to variations in world prices and exchange rates.

Chad:  Chad’s production is unlikely to reach 325,000 bales due to erratic rainfall received this year, especially in the northern region of the cotton belt. Cotton production is mainly concentrated in the south of the country, while herding prevails in the more arid northern zone. Cotton is the principal source of income for over one million Chadians (about 14 percent of the total population).  The cotton sector is organized around the Societe cotonniere du Tchad, CotonTchad, which provides seeds and inputs to farmers, and has a monopoly over the sales, processing and marketing of cotton. Lack of irrigation makes production highly vulnerable to climatic conditions as evidenced by the large fluctuations of lint production over the years. The lack of a railway and the long 1500-km distance between Chad and the nearest port of Douala, Cameroon, have also undermined the competitiveness of Chad’s cotton sector.

Cote d’Ivoire:  Rainfall for Cote d’Ivoire’s cotton belt, or northern savanna zone, has been near average with the exception of several small drought pockets. Cotton is a dominant crop and the most important source of cash income in the savannah region, with a high level of organization among the producers.  About 200,000 hectares of land are occupied by farmers organized under URESCO-CI, Union des Responsables du Coton en Cote d’Ivoire.  Privatization in 1998 resulted in a take-over of the former parastatal company, Compagnie Ivoirienne pour le developpement de la fibre textile (CIDT), by three groups: Ivoire Coton (northwest block), owned by IPS of the AgaKhan group; Compagnie Cotonniere (northeast block), owned by the Aiglon, a Swiss company; and Nouvelle CIDT.  URESCO-CI was excluded from bidding at the time of privatization, which motivated URESCO-CI to move strongly into marketing and industrial operations by opening a new gin at Korhogo. 
 

Mali:  Rainfall has been erratic and below normal for northern regions of Mali’s cotton belt.  Mali usually is the largest cotton producer in the Franc Zone, and Malian cotton is widely recognized as being of high quality with low production costs, despite low yields by world standards. Mali’s cotton belt is in the south, at latitudes of 10-degree and 14-degree north and longitutudes of 4 and 10-degree west.  Cotton is produced in an area inhabited by about 2.5 million people with 96 percent of the population engaged in production.

Cotton production in Mali typically revolves around small family farms, with village cooperatives in the southeast coordinated by the parastatal Compagnie malienne pour le developpement des textiles (CMDT).  Mali's cotton industry is currently organized as a vertically integrated system, with CMDT controlling almost all aspects of production, including the supply of fertilizers; purchase, transport and ginning of seed cotton; and the marketing of cotton fiber.

Senegal: Senegal is experiencing a severe drought which will reduce yields and production to low levels.  Planting reached 36,145 ha, but harvested area will probably be less, especially if more rainfall is not received through the middle of October.  Cotton is cultivated mostly in the southern part the country (Agricultural Lands of Senegal). Production and marketing is handled by Société de développement des fibres textiles (SODEFITEX) with 80 percent owned by the state, and the remainder owned by the Compagnie francaise de developpement des fibres textiles (CFDT, now called Dagris, the Developpement des agro-industries du Sud).

 Togo:  Togo’s cotton belt, which extends from the central to northern parts of the country, has received average rainfall this year.  Cotton is the main cash crop, traditionally accounting for 20-25 percent of Togo's export earnings. Low international prices have affected the sector in recent years and have led many farmers to switch from cotton to food crops. Most cotton farmers sell to the state marketing board, Societe togolaise de coton (SOTOCO), which is a partner with Daigris, formerly CFDT. SOTOCO also provides fertilisers and pesticides to the sector.

 Nigeria:  Nigeria’s lint production for 2002/03 is estimated at 400,000 bales, down from 450,000 bales last year.  Rainfall and NDVI is below normal in the northern cotton regions, and production is forecast to be less due to reduced planted area.  Poor returns for cotton are encouraging farmers to switch from cotton to corn or sorghum.  The northern cotton zone (Kaduna, Katsina, Bauchi, and Sokoto States) accounts for 80 percent of cotton production and the eastern zone (Kano, Borno, Plateau, and Niger) accounts for approximately 15 percent of cotton production (Nigeria Cotton Region). 

Related Links with the Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)

FAS attaché reports for cotton at Cote d’Ivoire and Nigeria

New cotton gin at Korhogo, Cote d’Ivoire

Drought in Senegal

For more information, contact Curt Reynolds
with the Production Estimates and Crop Assessment Division, at Curt.Reynolds@fas.usda.gov or (202) 690-0134.