Ministry of Agriculture Moves to Revive Nigeria’s Cotton Industry
March 1, 2012 Nigeria’s Ministry of Agriculture recently signed an Implementation Agreement with the West African Cotton Company (WACOT) in an effort to address the collapse of the cotton and textile industry in the country.
The country has faced “massive”importation of clothing and fabrics, causing deindustrialization to the cotton industry, according to The News Africa.
While global export volume of cotton increased to 6.3 million metric tons in 2008 from 3.755 million metric tons in 1961, Nigeria’s volume shrunk to zero in 2000 before rebounding to 19,000 metric tons in 2008, according to Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, who heads the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development.
With the new agreement, the Ministry hopes to restore the cotton industry through growth in production volume and foreign trade.
Cnsideration for cotton is part of the broader Agricultural Transformation Agenda, which targets key commodity value chains, of which first wave priority include rice, cassava, maize, soybean, sorghum, cocoa, oil palm, cotton, livestock and fisheries with a clear road map in terms of partnership opportunities, according to The News Africa.
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