WT/CFMC/W/61
2 September 2015
(15-4432)
Page: 1/9
Original: French
DIRECTOR-GENERAL'S CONSULTATIVE FRAMEWORK
MECHANISM ON COTTON
COMMUNICATION FROM BURKINA FASO
The following communication, dated 29 June 2015, is being circulated at the request of the
delegation of Burkina Faso.1
_______________
1 OVERVIEW OF THE COTTON SECTOR IN BURKINA FASO
1.1 GENERAL INFORMATION ON THE COTTON SECTOR IN BURKINA FASO
1.1. The cotton sector in Burkina Faso was liberalized in 2004, and its activities are split into
three zones under the responsibility of SOFITEX, SOCOMA, and Faso Coton respectively. The map
below shows the division into three zones of Burkina Faso's cotton growing basin.
This document is being circulated following the delegation of Burkina Faso's intervention at the
23 Round of the Director-General's Consultative Framework Mechanism on Cotton on 9 July 2015.
1
rd
WT/CFMC/W/61
-2-
DISTRIBUTION OF COTTON ZONES
FASO
COTON
ZONE
SOFITEX
ZONE
SOFITEX
Zone
Ginneries
Central
Zone
SOCOMA ZONE
Eastern
Zone
Provincial boundary
Source: SP-SFCL
1.2. In Burkina Faso, cotton is a rain-fed crop. The main characteristics of the sector are the
following:

around 350,000 cotton farms;

376,000 cotton producers;

9,000 Cotton Producer Groups (GPCs);

average total surface area per farm of 8.5 hectares;

average cotton production area per farm of 3 hectares;

small scale producers, not very literate, with an extremely low level of mechanization.
1.3. The distribution of crop rotations on farms is as follows:
Before the
2010/2011 season (%)
As from the
2010/2011 season (%)
Cotton
45
30
Cereals
56
56
9
14
Crop
Other crops
Source> SP-SFCL
1.4. In economic terms, it is worth noting that:

Cotton's contribution to the GDP is around 10%. For a long time, exports of fibre were
the main source of foreign exchange for Burkina Faso's economy and regularly
contributed to more than 60% of foreign currency earnings.
WT/CFMC/W/61
-3
However, the massive increase in gold mining in the past decade has seen cotton's
average contribution to foreign exchange earnings fall to around 35%.
2 ORGANIZATION AND STRUCTURE OF THE SECTOR
2.1. The different stakeholders in the sector are the State of Burkina Faso, the cotton producers
and companies, and the Cotton Industry Association. The chart below shows how the sector is
organized.
Famille of
desproducers
Producteurs
Family
Famille
des
Cotonnières
Family
ofSociétés
cotton companies
--GPC
GPC
- SOFITEX
--Unions
départementales
Departmental
unions
- SOCOMA
Provincial
unions
--Unions
provinciales
- FASO COTON
Union
Nationale
National
Uniondes
of Producteurs
Cotton
Producers
Burkina
du
Coton du of
Burkina
(UNPCB)
UNPCB
Association
Professionnelle
Professional
Associationdes
of
Sociétés
Cotton Cotonnières
Companies of
Burkina Faso
APROCOB
(APROCOB)
Etat
State
Secrétariat Permanent de Suivi de
Permanent Secretariat
lafor
Filière
Coton Libéralisée
Monitoring
the
Liberalized Cotton Sector
(SP/SFCL)
(SP/SFCL)
Interprofessional
Cotton
Association Interprofessionnelle
Association
of Burkina
du Coton du Burkina
(AICB)
(AICB)
Source: SP-SFCL
2.1 The State
2.2. The chief role of the State within the cotton sector is:

to guarantee the regulatory, legislative and fiscal framework;

to determine agricultural policies;

to regulate and ensure the smooth functioning of the sector;

to develop infrastructure.
2.2 The producers and their organizations
2.3. Since 1996, producers have belonged to associations
Groups" (GPCs). The main activities of these groups are:
called
"Cotton
Producer

distribution of inputs;

management of short- and medium-term loans;

marketing of seed cotton;

other related activities such as managing members' contributions and social welfare.
WT/CFMC/W/61
-42.4. Today, there are almost 9,000 GPCs throughout the country's cotton growing area. In 1998
they joined together to form cotton producers' unions, under the umbrella of the National Union of
Cotton Producers of Burkina Faso (UNPCB).
2.3 The cotton companies
2.5. Cotton companies are responsible for the following:

supplying producers with inputs;

giving producers advice;

buying, collecting and transporting seed cotton;

ginning seed cotton;

providing value added for finished products (fibre) and associated products (cotton seed,
fibre waste).
2.6. The cotton companies are grouped together in the Professional Association of Cotton
Companies (APROCOB).
2.4 Interprofessional Cotton Association of Burkina Faso
2.7. The Interprofessional Cotton Association of Burkina Faso (AICB) is a non-profit association
bringing together APROCOB and the UNPCB. It is responsible for:

the price-setting mechanism for seed cotton and the selling price of inputs;

approving cotton research programmes and budget;

managing the Smoothing Fund and the Inputs Fund;

creating a consultation framework to deal with issues of common interest to members;

managing the cotton chain through coordination among the different branches of the
sector.
2.5 The strategic partners
2.8. These consist essentially of cotton research and the banks.
2.5.1 Cotton research
2.9. Conducted by the National Institute for the Environment and Agricultural Research (INERA),
it plays a vital role in the production system and is in part responsible for the current dynamism of
cotton production. It works upstream in the following areas:
a. improvement of varieties;
b. agronomy, cultivation methods and natural resource management;
c.
agricultural socio-economics;
d. integrated crop protection and support.
WT/CFMC/W/61
-52.5.2 The banks
2.10. Local and foreign banks operate on several levels, chiefly:
a. financing crop season and input credits;
b. making short-, medium- and long-term loans to producers;
c.
financing investment by cotton companies and other participants in the chain.
3 DATA ON COTTON PRODUCTION
3.1. Following the record production of 713,000 tonnes in 2005/2006 thanks to the measures
adopted and implemented under the sector revival plan, production fell back to 360,000 tonnes in
2007/2008, and 451,000 tonnes in 2008/2009, owing to adverse climatic conditions and
depressed world cotton prices.
3.2. In 2009/2010, production fell to 361,997 tonnes, and in 2010/2011 to 335,398 tonnes,
before rising again to 417,383 tonnes in 2011/2012 and 650,000 tonnes in the 2013/2014 crop
year.
3.3. During the 2014/2015 season, production rose to 708,500 tonnes, 8% higher than the
2013/2014 season. In 2015/2016, production is expected to reach 778,181 tonnes of seed cotton.
3.4. The graph below shows the performance of Burkina Faso's cotton sector as described above.
Development of the acreage and production of seed cotton as well as the yield in the
field for the past ten seasons
900,000
1,200
800,000
1,100
700,000
1,000
900
500,000
400,000
800
300,000
Yield
in theau
field
(kg/ha)
(kg/ha)
Champ
Rendement
Production (t) et Superficie (ha)
Production (t) and area (ha)
600,000
700
200,000
600
100,000
-
500
2005/06
2006/07
Sown areas
(ha)
Superficies
emblavées
(Ha)
Source: AICB
2007/08
2008/09
2009/10
2010/11
2011/12
Seed cotton
production
(T)
Production
coton graine
(T)
2012/13
2013/14
2014/15
2015/16*
Average
seedCoton
cotton
yield
per hectare
Rendement
moyen
Graine
à l'hectare
(Kg/ha) (kg/ha)
WT/CFMC/W/61
-6-
3.5. Yields of seed cotton in the field have improved, rising from an average of 700 kg/ha in the
early 1990s to around a tonne at present (1,073 kg/ha in 2014/2015 as opposed to 1,007 kg/ha in
2013/2014 and 1,006 kg/ha in 2012/2013).
3.6. In recent years, however, yields have continued to hover at just over a tonne, giving the
impression that a ceiling has been reached in this respect.
Production and yield data for 2009/2010 to 2015/2016
Season
Area
(hectares)
Seed cotton
(tonnes)
Average yield
(kg/ha)
Fibre
(tonnes)
2009/2010
417,335
361,997
862
150,365
2010/2011
373,139
335,398
898
140,867
2011/2012
429,380
417,383
972
173,556
2012/2013
626,279
630,000
1,006
264,000
2013/2014
645,372
650,105
1,007
270,084
2014/2015
660,592
708,500
1,073
295,532
2015/2016 (forecast)
738,181
778,181
1,054
326,000
Source: AICB
4 DATA ON THE QUALITY OF THE FIBRE
4.1. The quality of cotton in Burkina Faso has always been a matter of great concern for the
stakeholders in the sector, since it is a key factor in the world cotton market. Consequently,
Burkina Faso acquired a cotton fibre classification laboratory which has always enabled the sector
to produce very high quality cotton, recognized throughout the world.
4.2. The laboratory used to classify cotton fibre from the three cotton companies is accredited by
COFRAC in accordance with standard NF ISO/CEI 17025.
4.3. This
accreditation
was
maintained
in
accordance
29 November 2014 following the first monitoring assessment.
with
4.4. The table below lists the types of fibre produced in Burkina Faso.
No. 1-5133 Rev. 1
of
WT/CFMC/W/61
-7Usual sales of Burkina Faso cotton in terms of classification or grade (colour, trash
content and preparation)
Standard
Top grades
Medium
grades
Lowest grades
Grade
White grades
Grade
Tinged grades
BOBY / Super
White cotton,
lustrous, few
impurities, good
preparation
BOLA / Super
Creamy colour, less
trace, few impurities,
good preparation
BOBY
White cotton, less
lustrous, presence of
some leaves, good or
average preparation
BOLA
Creamy colour, less
lustrous, presence of
some leaves, good or
average preparation
TOMA
White cotton, slightly
dull, presence of
leaves, average
preparation
RUDY
Creamy colour, some
spots, presence of
leaves, average
preparation
VOTA
Cotton, dull white to
slightly grey,
considerably more
leaves than TOMA,
average preparation
VIVA
Creamier colour, more
leaves than RUDY,
spotted, average
preparation
BUFA
Greyish or variegated
cotton, more leaves
than VOTA, with
preparation
BABU
More coloured and dull
than VIVA, more
leaves, with
preparation
BOBO / 3
Dull variegated cotton
with many leaves,
with preparation
BOBO / 4
Strongly yellow tinted
cotton, high trash
content, with
preparation
Source: AICB
5 SECTOR MANAGEMENT TOOLS
5.1. The tools for managing the sector are chiefly the Interprofessional Agreement, the price
setting mechanism referred to as the "Smoothing Mechanism", and the Cotton Inputs Fund.
5.1 The Interprofessional Agreement (AIP)
5.2. This is a collective agreement between the producers represented by the UNPCB and the
cotton companies represented by APROCOB.
5.3. The purpose of the Agreement is to determine the practical arrangements for sector
management missions that are entrusted to the AICB under the memorandum of understanding
setting out the terms and conditions applicable to operators in the sector. This memorndum,
signed by the State and the cotton sector operators (cotton companies and producers) defines the
State's commitments with respect to the sector, whose management has been handed over
entirely to the operators, as well as the obligations of the cotton companies and producers in
connection with the operation of the sector.
5.4. In particular, the AIP defines the method for determining the purchase price of seed cotton
and the selling price of inputs, and the management procedures for other common functions
(cotton research, seed multiplication and distribution, training and advice for producers, quality
control of seed cotton, fibre classification, slope maintenance in production areas, gathering of
economic, agronomic and statistical information, guidance and general monitoring of the sector).
WT/CFMC/W/61
-85.5. Annexed to the AIP as an integral part thereof are documents relating to the regulation of the
Smoothing Fund and of the Cotton Inputs Fund. The second revision of the AIP was signed in
April 2012.
5.2 The cotton price-smoothing mechanism for producers
5.6. Adopted by the AICB in March 2006, the objective of the cotton price-smoothing mechanism
for producers is to minimize cotton price fluctuations and high price volatility from one year to the
next, thereby securing producers' earnings. It is structured around the following elements:
a. determination of a floor price (set between March and April); this floor price takes
account of market signals, as it is indexed to world cotton price trends and US$/€
exchange rate projections;
b. coverage of the price risk thanks to a smoothing fund that guarantees the floor price
against fluctuations in international cotton prices.
NB:

The fund is added to when prices are higher than the fixed trend price and drawn from
when prices are below the floor price.

Smoothing Fund technical regulations and resources are managed and closely monitored
by the Bank of Africa (BOA), which was selected following a call for tenders.

The mechanism provides for the determination and payment of a complementary price
or rebate, which is fixed after the fibre has been for sale on the international market for
14 months (from January of year n to March of year n+1).

The rebate is paid when sales prices are higher than the price of the average trend
indicated by the mechanism and after the mechanism has used a part of the surplus to
replenish the Smoothing Fund.

After the Smoothing Fund has been replenished, which is a priority, the remaining
amount is distributed to producers (60%) and the three cotton companies (40%).

Where the level of production is higher than or equal to 500,000 tonnes of seed cotton,
the distribution figures change to 62% for producers and 38% for the cotton companies.

The Smoothing Fund Association (AFdL) established by the AICB is responsible for
monitoring and managing the mechanism.
5.3 The Cotton Inputs Fund of Burkina Faso
5.7. The cotton Inputs Fund is a mechanism whose chief objectives are:
a. to reduce the cost of agricultural inputs (improvement of producers' income);
b. to reduce the inputs burden for cotton companies, thereby improving their cash flow and
enabling them to pay producers for cotton seed more rapidly.
5.8. With an initial endowment of CFAF 10 billion obtained through the State and the TFPs, the
fund is monitored and managed by the Cotton Inputs Fund Association of Burkina (AFICB) set up
by the AICB.
5.9. The technical regulations and resources of the Inputs Fund are managed by a commercial
bank, (ECOBANK Burkina), which was selected following a call for tenders. The fund became
operational in September 2013.
WT/CFMC/W/61
-96 CONSTRAINTS FACING THE COTTON SECTOR
6.1. The chief constraints facing Burkina Faso's cotton sector are the following:

the repeated cotton crises that threaten the survival of the cotton sector;

the fluctuation of the euro/dollar exchange rate that sometimes affects the sector's gains
in competitiveness;

the stagnation of yields at around 1,000 kg per hectare for years;

the vulnerability of the production system to uncertainties and climate change;

the continuing decline in soil fertility;

the continuing rise in world input prices, which undermine the levels of yields, production
and, in particular, earnings of producers in Burkina Faso;

the ever increasing share of synthetic fibres in global textile consumption.
7 OUTLOOK
7.1. For the survival and prosperity of the cotton sector in Africa, and in Burkina Faso in
particular:

countervailing measures must be introduced urgently to prevent stagnation, bearing in
mind world price fluctuations and the size of deficits accumulated over the years;

market consolidation is essential in order to reach price levels that allow cotton of
African origin to balance the books;

field productivity must be increased through improved exploitation and adaptation of
transgenic cotton;

programmes must be developed to improve agricultural yields and water and soil
conservation (stone barriers, compost pits, sowing under the cover of plants, cultivation
techniques, etc.);

the possibility of an insurance mechanism suited to the increasingly uncertain climatic
situation should be considered;

production should be processed locally to protect it from the negative effects of the
international market.
__________