Burkina Faso to help improve cotton output in Venezuela

15 May '14

2 min read

The West African nation of Burkina Faso will share its knowledge of cotton production technology with Venezuela, according to a framework agreement on cooperation in strategic areas between the two nations signed by the foreign ministers of the two countries in Caracas.

Venezuelan Foreign Minister Elias Jaua said that Burkina Faso was one of the largest cotton producers in the world and added that his country seeks to increase the production of cotton crop, which was destroyed during the earlier neo-liberal governments.

Revival of the lost cotton farming would require a great effort, Mr. Jaua said, and added that progress has been made towards that goal by inaugurating an agro-industrial complex for growing and processing of cotton in Cabruta town of Guárico state. However, further investment is required to allow the complex attain its full capacity.

Venezuela and Burkina Faso established diplomatic relations in September 2003, and so far the cooperation between two countries focused on food support with funding through multilateral organizations such as the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

Burkina Faso was the first country in Western Africa to allow cultivation of Bt cotton in 2003, on an experimental basis, in view of the profitability concerns of cotton industry and environmental and health risks associated with the use of pesticides. By 2007-08, genetically modified cotton became popular and farmers planted Bt cotton seeds on 120,000 hectares of land in 2009-10.

Representing a 20 percent share in overall exports, cotton remained the top export item for Burkina Faso since the country got independence in 1960 till 2009, when gold took over it.

In 2013-14 season, braving difficult and poorly distributed rainfall, farmers in Burkina Faso produced 750,000 tons of cotton, making the country the largest cotton producer in Africa. The Interprofessional Cotton Association of Burkina (AICB) expects production to go up further to 800,000 tons in 2014-15 season.

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