How Benin is on the road to reshaping its cotton industry, with China’s help

AI Summary

Benin is upgrading its cotton industry infrastructure with support from China, aiming to connect its northern cotton-growing region to southern processing hubs like the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone near Cotonou. This initiative is part of the government's plan to reduce raw cotton exports and bolster local processing capabilities.

For decades, moving Benin’s cotton harvest from the north of the country to its southern ports was a slow, difficult journey along unpaved roads. Benin is Africa’s largest cotton producer, but it lacked the infrastructure needed to connect its northern cotton-growing belt to the coast and processing plants in the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone (GDIZ) near Cotonou, the country’s largest city and economic capital. The GDIZ – part of the government’s efforts to end raw cotton exports – now processes a...