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The Cotton Sector Of Benin Africa Region Working Paper Series No. 125 (2009)
BibTeX
@MISC{Consultant09thecotton,
author = {Nicolas Gergely Consultant},
title = {The Cotton Sector Of Benin Africa Region Working Paper Series No. 125},
year = {2009}
}
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Abstract
T his country study is a background paper prepared for the comparative analysis of organization and performance of cotton sectors in Sub-Saharan Africa, a study carried out by the World Bank, with the objective of analyzing the links between sector structure and observed performance outcomes and thus draw lessons from reform experience that can provide useful guidance to policy-makers, other local stakeholders, and interested donors agencies.. It describes and reviews the cotton sector situation in Benin and the reforms that the sector has undergone since the beginning of the 1990s. Reforms entailed mainly the privatization of input supply, introduction of private ginners and creation of interprofessional bodies to take over the sector management, through a highly regulated system precluding competition among ginners. The outcome of these reforms were far beyond expectations, because of a lack of support from the Government, as well as because of the complexity of the regulation mechanisms which made them difficult to enforce and because of the weakness of farmers organizations. As a consequence of these shortcomings, the payment of seed cotton to producers became irregular, resulting in a steep drop in production. With the privatization of the main cotton company, SONAPRA, finally completed at the end of 2008, the sector is now moving towards a concentrated type, dominated by one private operator. This evolution calls for new regulation mechanisms, currently being considered by Government and stakeholders.
Keyphrases
cotton sector draw lesson new regulation mechanism sub-saharan africa cotton sector situation input supply useful guidance concentrated type sector management main cotton company interprofessional body regulated system reform experience steep drop farmer organization regulation mechanism local stakeholder observed performance outcome background paper seed cotton comparative analysis sector structure world bank interested donor agency private operator country study private ginners
