WT/CFMC/W/79  
4 May 2020 
(20-3398) Page: 1/6 
Sub-Committee on Cotton  Original:  French  
 
  
THE DIRECT OR GENERAL'S CONSULTATIVE FRAM EWORK  
MECHANISM ON COTTON 
COTTON DEVELOPMENT A SSISTANCE PRE- AND POST -2003 AND THE  C-4 INITIATIVE : 
THE CASE OF BENIN  
The following  communication, re ceived on  12 March  2020, is being circulated at the request of the  
delegation of Benin.1 
 
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1  INTRODUCTION  
1.1.  Between  1960 and 2018, Benin benefited from over 30 international cooperation projects 
aimed at developing its cotton sector . In nearly 70 years of international cooperation , it is thus 
possible to group the projects based on their implementation period , objecti ves, areas of intervention  
and frequency . In th e history of development projects , the C-4 Initiative, launched at the 
WTO Ministerial Co nference in Cancún in 2003, marked a turning point . In fact, since  2003, the 
number of projects and partners has increased significantly, resulting in a change of  attitude by 
domestic stakeholders and  donors alike . This shift , the fruit of concerted efforts by the international 
commu nity to offset market distortions , has enabled the cotton sector in Benin to access a vast  
repository of knowledge and techniques . Based on this repository , decision -makers have been able 
to identify  the most relevant  element s that are the best suited  to the local context in order to adopt  
innovations in the agricultural sector, thus transforming it. This article provides some insights into 
how the concerted efforts at the international level have impacted  transformations on the ground in 
the domestic cotton sector.  
2  INTERNATIONAL COTTON  DEVELOPMENT A SSISTANCE  TO BENIN PRE-2003: SUPPORT 
FOR ESTABLISHING AN INST ITUTIONAL FRAMEWORK  FOR THE COTTON SECTOR   
2.1.  Between  1963 and 2018, the Government of Benin signed  28 cooperation projects with  
12 international partners aimed  specifically at  developing the cotton sector . The duration of e ach 
project was between  two and eight years and the average implementation period was four and a 
half years . In total, this amount ed to 123 years of  cotton projects  in Benin, which has enabled the 
country to capitalize on the plant as the main crop and export , and the backbone of the country's 
industrial fabric .2 
2.2.  At a first glance , the analysis  and objectives of the projects appear to be similar  over the years . 
In fact, since the  1960s and up to today,  the project analysis has remained the same and is based 
on the following three premises:  (i) agriculture is the most important economic sector of the country 
and, within this sector, cotton plays a determining role ; (ii) the poverty rate is high in  rural 
cotton -growing areas ; and (iii) technical and financial resources are lacking in the institutions that 
oversee  the sector . These three observations  based on analysis  of the implemented projects have 
remained valid over  the years  and have determined the development objectives of the initiatives . 
 
1 This communication concerns a study conducted by Mr  Alexis Hougni, Permanent Secretary, 
Inter-Professional Cotton Association (Benin) and Mr Alvaro Moreira, PhD researcher, Institute of Development 
Studies (UK). It deals with that study as presented at th e 31st series of consultations held under the 
DG's Consultative Framework Mechanism on Cotton, on 6 June 2019.  
2 MPD, National Development Plan 2018 -2025. WT/CFMC/W/79  
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  Thus, the various projects in the cotton sector have focu sed on institutional development  (including  
R&D) with a view to increasing  production and the revenue of cotton producers . 
2.3.  Based on this general observation , the projects can be categorized according to their 
implementation period  and the country's economic and political context. The y can thus be grouped 
into five phases, the last of which is the post -2003 Cancún Ministerial Conference  period . 
2.4.  Three projects were implemented  in the period running from  1960 to 1981 in the cotton sector 
in Benin . The first  project , launched in 1 963 by the French  Aid and Cooperation Fund , aims to 
quadruple the production of cotton seed . This project led to a regular increase  in production , notably 
through increase in yield, which rose from  270 kg per hectare in 1962  to 825 kg per hectare in 
1970.3 In the  1970s, two World Bank projects  support ed the development of the sector  through the 
institutional  strengthening of the integrated system  that was put in place by the French .4 However , 
introduction of the  Marxist -Leninist  system  by Mathieu Kérékou in 1974  meant that the  Zou-Borgou  
project  (named after the regions where it was implemented ) could not be completed  as the new  
policy stance  adopted by the regime  favour ed the production of food crops over cotton.5 
Nevertheless , given the drastic drop in the  production of cotton seed during the  1970s, a new policy 
direction  favour able to  cotton  would help boost  production supported by  World Bank developmental 
projects . 
2.5.  The rural development projects of the  1980s built on the experience of the projects that came 
before them. I n 1982, the World Bank launched two major rural development projects in the same 
provinces of Zou and Borgou. The technical and financial support brought by these projects are key 
to the institutional consolidation of the cotton sector in particular and the agricultural sec tor in 
general . In the late  1980s, the production of cotton seed exceeded  100,000 tonnes  compared with 
about 15 ,000 tonnes6 at the beginning of the decade . Even more important for further developing 
the sector , these regional projects promote d and strength ened agricultural extension by providing 
training and financial assistance to  Regional Action Centres for Rural Development (CARDER). The 
Zou, Borgou  and Borgou  2 projects have thus b olstered  the State's agricultural advisory service  and 
the presence of extension workers throughout the country . 
Figure 1: Cotton p roduction, surface area and yield  in Benin between  1960 and 20067 
 
 
2.6.  In the 1990s, when the World Bank was focusing its efforts on in stitutional reform s to meet 
the demands of the democratic renaissance of  1991, French cooperation assistance  focused on 
agricultural research . Between  1996 and 2001, PARAB, PADSE and PARCOB provided essential 
 
3 World Bank, Appraisal of the Zou -Borgou Cotton Project Dahomey . 
4 Clouvel et al., Organisation de l a production cotonnière africaine: de la décolonisation à la 
libéralisation des filières ; Levrat, ' Le coton dans la zones franc depuis 1950. Un succès remis en cause' . 
5 Kpadé and Boinon, Dynamique des politiques cotonnières au Bénin: une lecture par la dé pendance de 
sentier ; Sinzogan et al., An Analysis of the Organizational Linkages in the Cotton Industry in Benin . 
6 Levrat, Le coton dans la zone franc depuis 1950. Un succès remis en cause . 
7 Levrat, p. 54.  
WT/CFMC/W/79  
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  support to Benin's National Agricultural Research Institute  (INRAB) and the Research Centre on 
Agriculture, Cotton and Fibres  (CRA-CF). These  initiatives enable d Benin , as a first step , to develop 
its own cotton varieties that were better adapted  to the country's different ecosystems  in order to 
increase yield  and to consider agriculture  in a new light: as a comprehensive system  in which cotton 
plays a pivotal role . 
2.7.  These projects were implemented during a period of  farm acreage expansion  and, as a result,  
led to a  significa nt increas e in production. While t he impact of the project s was felt in the long term , 
that impact  remain ed contingent on the dynamics of the institutional context . Thus, following many 
years during which  production levelled off at about  400,000 tonnes in the early 2000s, the 
institutional crisis that affected the sector in  2004, combi ned with  the fall in prices on the  
international  market , a 10-year period of low  production  was ushered in . Between  2004 and 2016,  
production varied between  136,000 and 393,000 to nnes, but the proliferation of international 
cooperation projects managed to boost production starting in  2017, building on a more  stable and 
favourable domestic institutional framework that helped develop the sector . 
Figure 2: Cotton p roduction, surface  area and yield in Benin between  2000 and 20188 
 
 
3  THE POST -2003  PERIOD : DIVERSIFICATION OF PARTN ERS, INITIATIVES AND 
OPPORTUNIT IES  
3.1.  The number of projects in the cotton sector in  Benin increased considerably in the years 
following the  Fifth WTO Ministerial Conference  and the launch of the  Cotton Sectoral Initiative  by the 
C-4 Group. In total, between  2004 and 2018, 22 projects were signed , accounting for over two thirds  
of the total number of co tton-specific project in  Benin received since  1960. This increase also led to 
the multiplication of partners . Until 2006, only the World Bank , France and the Netherlands had  
financed projects in this sector in Benin. However,  starting from  2008, Germany and the 
United  States  have been spearheading th e main initiatives  (such as the  West Africa Cotton Import 
Programme ( WACIP ) and the Compaci  Project ) and South -South cooperation  has been on the rise  
with projects with Brazil , Chin a, India and Turkey . 
 
8 AIC, Recensement des producteurs et des parcel les, déclarations et mesures parcellaires, poses et 
exploitation des carrés de rendement, estimation de la production de coton graine. Campagne 2017 -2018. 
WT/CFMC/W/79  
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  Figure 3: Number of development projects implemented p er year  (1960 -2018)  
 
 
3.2.  In response to the sector's institutional instability , the main State partners  established in  2008 
a working group dedicated to "analysing the reforms underway and meeting the demands of the 
Government and  the stakeholders involved in the cotton sector ".9 The working group proposed a 
new approach for developing  the sector, which w as taken on board by the Government in 
January  2009. In the same year, the Cotton Trade Association  (AIC) launched the  Project to impr ove 
and boost the cotton sector in Benin  (PARFCB), an initiative funded entirely by domestic funds that 
aimed to promote  the cotton sector until  2012.  
3.3.  Despite the institutional instability experienced by the sector, therefore,  these projects found 
in the field strong institutions  that enabled the activities to be conducted and specific objectives to 
be met . For example , the solid institutional framework  and qualified cotton research staff allow the 
international partners to have  counterparts in the fie ld able to adopt  and share techniques  beyond 
the project implementation period . In fact, despite the diversification of partners , the projects were 
similar in type and purpose . First, actors in the field were no longer simply given resources  (a change 
comp ared with projects up to  2003), and second, the project objectives all aim to increase the 
competitivity of Benin's cotton , directly reflecting the  discussions held at the WTO through the 
C-4 Initiative . 
3.4.  By having this common overall purpose , the different  projects seek to disseminate practices in 
Benin to change the way cotton is produced in order to increase  production, enhance cotton fibre 
quality , and to make the cotton crop sustainable  in a context of  poor soil quality and climate change.  
On the one hand, it is not possible to deliver in  a single project all the changes that have come about 
in the sector over the past years  and on the other, it would be naïve to think that a project that has 
been ongoi ng for years could transform the productive structures of an entire country. Structural 
changes are brought about in the long term , going well beyond the implementation period for 
cooperation projects , especially those in the agricultural sector . This fact underscores, yet again, the 
important role of national  institutions as anchors to ensure coordination  and be the unifying element  
for temporary, specific projects . 
3.5.  Since 2016, the cotton sector in Benin has been boom ing. Production reached  597,000 tonnes 
in 2018 and the forecasts for  2019 rank Benin as the leading cotton -producing country  in 
West Africa, with  over 700,000 tonnes, ahead of  Mali and Burkina  Faso. The share  of cooperation 
projects in this process is difficult to measure . This unprecedented increase in  production comes at 
a time when the political climate is very conducive to the  sector's development . Since 2016, the AIC 
has been restored and reorganized , extension services have been reformed and stren gthened , and 
more resources  have been injected into research . Favourable climatic conditions  combin ed with 
enhanced organi zation of agricultural input distribution have also reassured  produc ers following 
years of uncertainty, thus encouraging them to remain in the sector . 
 
9 Wennink, Meenink, and Djihoun, La filière coton tisse sa toile au Bénin. Les organisations de 
produ cteurs étoffent leurs services aux exploitations agricoles familiales , p. 24.  
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  3.6.  All of the se factors have allowed  Benin to reach current  production levels in the space of 
three  years . The contribution  made by the  projects is more apparent in the transformation  of 
agricultural practices  into crop management techniques , which is the main practica l guidance for 
producers . In fact,  post-2003 projects all focused on sharing different sustainable land management 
and soil conservation techniques . Since  2016, the AIC has adopted a programme to boost production 
based on  increasing fertili zer dosage and combining chemical and organic fertili zers. The issue of 
poor-quality soils has also become a major concern  for sector managers , who are scaling up efforts 
to sensitize producers to the stakes involved in soil  protection and conservation, as demonstrat ed 
by training sessions and  meetings organized by the relevant national  institutions . 
3.7.  This shift by national decision -makers was made  possible because  the stak eholders in volved  
(researchers , administrat ors, produ cers and extension workers ) were exposed to several agricultural 
techniques  shared by different countries in the post -2003 period . Thus, while some projects focused 
on composting techniques  and the use of manure as an organic fertili zer, others concentrate d on 
seedlings under plant cover , mechanization or genetic improvements . The wide range of projects 
thus broadens the possibilities for sector stakeholders , who can then adopt and adapt the most 
suitable t echniques for their own circumstances , pace and periodicity of structural changes , rather 
than th ose proposed by a single project . 
4  CONCLUSION: PROJE CTS AS WINDOWS OF OPPORT UNITY FOR INNOVATION  AND 
AGRICULTURAL DEVELOP MENT  
4.1.  The provision of d evelopment assista nce to the cotton sector in  Benin illustrates the real 
potential development  projects can have in the field . First, the historical aspect should be 
underscored . Project evaluation should be based on  a longitudinal analysis of the  context. Post-2003 
projects were successful well before the institutional framework for the cotton sector wa s 
established.  In the  2000s, projects under the  C-4 Initiative were able to rely on robust national  
institutions to adopt the most suitable practices . 
4.2.  Second , the case of  Benin points to the  contribution  made by the  projects against in the 
prevailing domestic political and economic context . It is widely acknowledged that national 
development and structural changes depend more on the domestic political and economic climate , 
which have long -term effects , rather than on time -bound and specific interventions by international 
partners . That is why when a project is analysed in isolation , its measurable  impact is limited to the 
direct beneficiaries  and cannot easily be extend ed to all co tton producers in the host country . 
However , when the  projects are examined as a whole, taking into consideration those that were 
conducted before and those that are implemented in parallel, the impact of international  cooperation  
is more  visible . This is because the process of taking on board practices intr oduced by a project  
necessarily implies some adaptation and their combination with other factors derived from other 
sources, which could also be other projects . 
4.3.  This being the case, the increase in the number of projects under the WTO  C-4 Initiative  has 
also widened the repository of know -how, agricultural techniques and practices for national 
decision -makers. Despite the fact that it is difficult, even impossible, to establish a causal link 
between the projects and the increase in cotton grain production since 2016, this may be attributable 
to the several interventions aimed at prioritizing measures to combat poor soil quality  and climate  
change adaptation measures as part of  sector management mechanisms  in Benin. This is  undeniably,  
by far, the greatest challenge today . 
4.4.  The future of development assistance for Benin's cotton sector  should therefore consider the 
individual  limitations of each project , as well as the contribution of each initiative taken as part of 
the long -term change  process.   WT/CFMC/W/79  
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