COLLAPSE OF COTTON INDUSTRY LOOMING

By PENJANI NZIMA and NOEL IYOMBWA

THE Cotton industry in Zambia is at the verge of going under due the drastic reduction in the cotton production volumes that have dropped from 275,000 tonnes to 21, 445 tonnes in the past 14years.

This is a key industry in the country’s agriculture space and the reduction in cotton production has serious effects on the economy in general and livelihoods of thousands smallholder farmers in particular.

And furthermore the focus of this industry is much inclined on raw cotton exports with less attention on value addition and processing thereby missing greater opportunities for economic growth and job creation.

This is contained in a statement by Cotton Activist Nchimunya Bbebe and made available to Agri-Coop Newspaper.

Mr. Nchimunya disclosed that the declining of cotton production in Zambia has been caused by several factors that include poor weather conditions due to climate change, reduced number of farmers growing the crop as well as laxity in technology development and adaptation process.

“Cottonseed productivity has also been declining due to continued reliance on cottonseed varieties that are becoming unsuited under the changing climate,” he added.

He has however commended the efforts of organizations such as the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC) , International Trade Centre ( ITC) and the Government of Brazil for the support rendered to the cotton sector.

Mr. Nchimunya said even with this kind of support the success and sustainability of these interventions largely depend on the existence of robust research extension and regulatory framework.

“Weurge government to facilitate the reinvigoration of the cotton sector by energizing key sector institutions such as the Cotton Development Trust (CTD),the Cotton Board of Zambia and the Cotton Association of Zambia (CAZ) ,” he indicated.

He added that the smallholder cotton farmers must also be encouraged to adopt modern farming practices in order for them to improve their yields.

Mr. Nchimunya emphasized that the cotton sector has enormous potential for job creation and contribution to the inflow of foreign exchange.

“We call on the Cotton Board of Zambia in conjunction with the government and others take holders to develop a robust and workable Cotton development Strategy which should cover all aspects of cotton production from technology development to textile production. Such a strategy is likely to result in developments which will unlock the cotton sector’s potential in job creation and export earnings,” said Mr Nchimunya.

And ina separate interview ginners have confirmed the slump in cotton production in the last twelve to fourteen years.

But the ginners did indicate that despite the drop in production of cotton various companies are working round the clock and doing all their level best in order to revamp the production of cotton to desirable levels.

“Cotton companies are still operating; they’re obviously trying their best to up the production. There few companies that are operating and each company is undertaking various initiatives to up the production,” ginners disclosed.  

Cotton is a major cash crop in Zambia and contributes significantly to the country's economic growth.

The industry is dominated by multinational ginneries who maintain a mono polistic grip on cotton procurement, procurement and marketing.

Approximately 250,000 farmers grow cotton perennially and an estimated15 to 25 percent of their household income relies on cotton farming.