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Fiber cotton production dropped 75.9% quarter on quarter in Q2
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Flooding disrupted harvesting and supply to ginning plants
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Lower output and weaker prices cut export revenues in H1 2025
Cotton fiber production in Cameroon fell sharply in the second quarter, dropping 75.9% from the first quarter, traditionally the main harvest period, the Ministry of Finance said in its latest economic outlook.
The contraction extended over the full first half of the year. On a year-on-year basis, output declined by 28.1% to 88,071 tons.
The downturn was driven mainly by adverse weather conditions. Flooding in several production basins disrupted harvesting operations and constrained the supply of raw cotton to ginning plants, the report said.
On international markets, raw cotton prices averaged $1.72 per kilogram in the second quarter of 2025, up 1.2% from the previous quarter, equivalent to about CFA957 per kilogram at the June 30, 2025 exchange rate.
Year on year, however, prices fell by 9.5%. The decline reflects stronger global supply, supported by a rebound in production in Brazil, the United States, and Australia, alongside weaker demand from China and the European Union, two of the world’s main cotton markets. For full-year 2025, prices are expected to post an average decline of 9.1%.
The combined effect of lower output and weaker annual prices weighed on export earnings. In the first six months of 2025, raw cotton exports generated CFA82.8 billion, down from CFA101.9 billion a year earlier, a decline of about CFA19 billion.
To address rising climate risks, the Cotton Development Company of Cameroon (Sodecoton) and the National Observatory on Climate Change (Onacc) have signed a five-year framework agreement aimed at strengthening the resilience of cotton production to climate change impacts.
Amina Malloum
