Malawian cotton output expected to skyrocket (Malawi)

Thanks to sustained Malawian government efforts, cotton production in the 2011-12 season is expected to skyrocket by 365 percent.

The estimated cotton production for 2011-2012 is 244,000 tons compared to only 52,000 tons in the previous season, a hike of 365 percent.

This was revealed by Malawi President - Joyce Banda in her State of the Nation Address delivered in Parliament.

The President attributed the rise in cotton output to the government’s efforts to promote production of the cash crop.

The government had allocated US $6.4 million in the 2011-12 budget for procuring farm inputs.

The President also expected that cotton acreage would rise from 236,269 hectares in the current season to 250,000 hectares in the next cotton season.

She also expected that acquisition of three ginneries by the government would help improve cotton ginning capacity.