Prepared for 30th International Cotton Conference Bremen, 24 – 27 March 2010

Understanding Cotton Demand and Promoting Origin – The Example of African Cotton

Introduction

Africa, both francophone as well as anglophone, has traditionally been an important cotton production base. Cotton produced in Africa is mainly exported by international merchants to Asia, where today almost 80% of world cotton fibre is processed into yarn. Fibre transformation rates in Africa are at a historic low, with only 5% of francophone and 43% of anglophone African cotton being processed on the continent. Thus, on average, 83% of sub-Saharan African cotton is exported as lint, almost exclusively through intermediaries.

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