(Business in Cameroon) - The World Bank and German cooperation in Cameroon have just released the results of a study entitled “An analysis of Cameroon’s Apparel-Textile Industry” which reveals a breakdown in local cotton processing. Indeed, according to this study, “only 2% of the cotton produced in Cameroon (Sodecoton production should reach 265,000 tonnes at the close of the current season) is processed locally.”

The only cotton mill company and sole local provider of cotton for textiles is none other than Cotonnière industrielle du Cameroun (CICAM). The State-run company, which is currently carrying out a 5.5 billion FCFA investment programme to boost its activities, uses only “1,600 tonnes of fibre to produce 1,500 tonnes of thread, 8,000 km of raw fabric and 300 tonnes of sponge.”

The study notes that Cameroon’s lack of cotton processing is due to “the absence of an integrated cotton-textiles-apparel sector” which is “extremely harmful to the country’s economy.” Consequently, the country is unable to glean the benefits of “the added value, which is 12 times more between unprocessed cotton and the final garment.”