Published on :
The cotton sector in Mali has seen happier days: while the country is preparing to lose its place as the leading African producer, following a significant drop in production, the management of the Compagnie cotonnière is facing the revolt of a part of the producers.
Malian producers no longer really have any illusions: they will have much less cotton to sell this year. At least four ginning factories have already closed, in Sikasso, Kadiolo, and Kignan, while they usually operate until April. The others could have finished ginning by the end of February, according to an actor in the sector given the little cotton that remains to be processed.
A production subject to debate
Several sources report production that should hardly exceed 400,000 tonnes. For the Kadiolo area alone, confirmed production is 9,000 tonnes, less than half of last year’s. On the side of the National Cotton Company, they still cling to the hope of obtaining between 500 and 550,000 tons of cotton. The entire sector now seems to have taken note of a drop in production compared to last year – 770,000 tonnes – but the expected volumes do not yet meet with consensus and have almost become taboo according to several sources.
These divergences are a reflection of the tension experienced by the industry. The election of the authorities of the Confederation of Cooperative Societies of Cotton Producers of Mali, for example, was interrupted on October 5, 2022 and has not been resumed since by the judicial representative appointed in the meantime. Yacouba Kone, the president of the elected partial office deplores the situation and accuses the CEO of the Malian Company for the Development of Textiles (CMDT), in office since November 2020, and therefore installed by the military in power, of bad management and wanting divide the producers.
► Also to listen: The cry of alarm from West African cotton producers
The not very talkative CMDT
An official of the Compagnie Cotonnière contacted by RFI refutes the existence of tension between the management and the producers, but refuses to comment further. At the end of December, the producers’ group seized its supervisory ministry in order to find an answer to “ outrage of its members who listed a series of grievances.
The producers’ confederation warns, “ the state cannot force us to grow cotton next year “. It is understood that nothing is certain for the 2023/2024 campaign if common ground is not found.
The producers know that they are preparing in any case for difficult months: because of the lack of cotton, they will not be able to repay all the credits due to the CMDT.
They also fear that the current situation will spill over into next year: the delivery of fertilizers could indeed be delayed: the inputs are delivered by the trucks that come to load the cotton. A falling harvest could imply less rotation by road, explains a French trader who also shares the concerns of producers.
► To listen too : West African cotton farmers face falling incomes