Mozambique’s cotton exports generated 61% less revenue in the first nine months of 2024 compared to the same period the previous year, despite national production increasing, according to official data consulted this week by Lusa.
According to a report by the Bank of Mozambique detailing national exports, from January to September, they amounted to 11.9 million dollars (11.1 million euros), whereas in the same period in 2023, they totaled 30.3 million dollars (28.3 million euros).
“This performance was a consequence of an 8% reduction in the price of cotton fiber on the international market,” the document states.
Despite this drop in export revenue, cotton production in Mozambique actually grew by 2% in 2024 compared to the previous year, reaching 24,000 tons.
According to data from the 2024 budget execution report of the Ministry of Finance, cotton production—one of the country’s key crops—fell short of the 40,000-ton target, reaching only 60% of the goal, although it was still higher than the 23,516 tons produced in 2023.
In 2024, the cotton cultivation area in Mozambique expanded to 96,523 hectares, compared to 95,097 hectares the previous year, according to the same data.
According to data shared with Lusa in May by the president of the Mozambique Cotton Association (AAM), Francisco Ferreira dos Santos, cotton in Mozambique has represented an annual average of 30 to 50 million dollars (28 to 46.7 million euros) in exports over the past ten years and is considered an essential crop: “It has a huge value chain (…) it is an almost sacred crop, with a catalytic effect on the economy and demographics.”
The Mozambican government granted a subsidy last year for cotton purchases of five meticais (seven cents) per kilogram in the current campaign, stabilizing prices and benefiting 600,000 farmers, in addition to fostering a “culture of trust,” the minister in charge announced in May.
“This price stabilization and the subsidy we are approving will impact around 100,000 families. We are talking about a total of 600,000 people who will have their income stabilized,” said Mozambique’s then Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Celso Correia.
For the 2023/24 campaign, the minimum price was set at 30 meticais (45 euro cents) per kilogram for cotton sales, including the government subsidy, compared to 33 meticais (50 cents) per kilogram and a seven-metical (11-cent) subsidy in the previous campaign.
The lack of rain in some regions of the country due to the El Niño weather phenomenon, the continued abandonment of production in the province of Cabo Delgado—one of the country’s largest producers—but, above all, an oversupply in the market, pushed prices down and led to the establishment of a subsidy for the second consecutive year to maintain producers’ income.
“There is global pressure from countries with subsidies, which is driving cotton prices down. A lot of cotton is being produced, stocks are rising,” explained Minister Celso Correia.
Mozambique accounts for less than 0.5% of the world’s cotton production, in a market dominated by countries such as the United States, China, and India.
In the 2022/23 campaign, 37,400 tons were traded, with state subsidies amounting to 261.6 million meticais (3.8 million euros).
Source: Lusa
