German to support Togo boost cotton yield

German is has announced its plans to support Togo boost their cotton yield. German ministry for economic cooperation and development (BMZ) made the announcement and said the plans will be implemented through GIZ’s “Support project for sustainable cotton production in Côte d’Ivoire, Chad, and Togo”.

The program will run over the next three years and will help 10,000 Togolese cotton farmers to produce their crops more sustainably. The project will allow farmers to grow cotton using less chemical fertilizers and with less impact on the environment.

Good environmental and social practices 

They will also be helped to become more resilient to climate change, by 2024. Beneficiaries will also be trained in good environmental and social practices for cotton farming, via several rural lending and savings associations.

“The support project for sustainable cotton production will help revamp Togo’s cotton industry. This project will increase agricultural yields and allow producers to have significant income. Olam has a similar project for Togo’s cotton sector,” said Nouvelle Société Cotonnière du Togo (NSCT), Martin Drevon.

According to Koussouwè Kouroufei, chairman of the FNGPC, Togo produced 67,185 t of cotton seed and cultivated over 100,050 hectares, which corresponds to an average yield of 672 kg per ha. In 2021-2022, the country’s output slumped by 12.24%, to 52,528 t. Over the period, however, yield per hectare rose. Moreover, cotton also faces rising competition from soybeans, which farmers believe to be more profitable.