The +Cotton Project

UNDP South-South|Galaxy Knowledge Hub

The +Cotton Project

Working for the sustainable development of cotton in Latin American and the Caribbean

Challenges

Cotton is one of the most important agricultural products in the world. An estimated 350 million people around the world carry out economic cotton-related activities, which makes it one of the 20 most important commodities for exportation. This sector helps smallholder farmers and their families gain access to food, health services, housing and many other goods and services. Furthermore, through value addition and export of textiles, cotton contributes to the growth of the economy, thereby multiplying its effects on job creation and income in the sector. During the last 20 years, project partner countries, including Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay and Peru, where 80 per cent of cotton production comes from family farmers or small-scale agriculture, have faced a decrease in cotton production, affecting the potential of thousands of farming families to generate income.

Toward a Solution

In order to address this challenge, cooperation was established between the Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC), Ministry of External Relations (MRE) and its Brazilian cooperating institutions (Embrapa, Abrapa, Empaer-PB, Asbraer, solidarity economy organizations and universities), in collaboration with the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) and the governments of seven partner countries. The project aims to contribute to the sustainable development of the cotton value chain in the partner countries, drawing on the experience of Brazilian institutions engaged in the sector. The project is built around four components: sustainable production of cotton; promotion of policy dialogue, policy development and strategic alliances, including public-private partnerships; enhanced competitiveness of the sector and its actors involved including women, youth and indigenous people; and the promotion of markets and sustainable development of the cotton value chain.

In the framework of South-South cooperation, activities undertaken through the project include: technical support to participating countries focused on the adoption of cotton varieties resistant to pests and disease, soil management and integrated pest management; technology and innovation for the modernization of cotton cultivation; sustainable management of natural resources; technical support to rural extension services for family farmers; and exchange of experiences and good practices and technologies and others.

Through this project, a regional network of more than 70 public and private sector actors have been mobilized in the partner countries, uniting efforts to make the cotton value chain competitive, and supporting family farmers’ access to markets, resulting in an increase in their quality of life and their livelihoods. More than US$14 million have been invested to expand governments’ technical and management capacities towards a sustainable cotton sector in Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti, Paraguay and Peru. This has led to the following outcomes:

Income generation: Cotton as an integrated crop in a diversified production system plays an important role in income generation, with potential by-products and new uses in the value chain. There are 36 demonstration and validation best practices in cotton production.
Capacity development: More than 70 public institutions in partner countries were provided with new capacities and knowledge and increased their levels of public and public/private coordination to support the development and organization of the cotton value chain.
Agricultural techniques: Good agricultural practices were adopted in rural extension, the efficient use of inputs, integrated pest management, mechanization and development of the first prototype of a one-line cotton-harvesting machine for small areas, all of which in collaboration with Embrapa.
Strengthened biodiversity: The ancestral identity of countries, and their indigenous, rural and artisan communities were restored through the recovery of cotton varieties, training in production and processing, value addition, management and sale.
Access to market: Production was connected to the market by expanding certification alternatives for fiber and its processed products and taking advantage of the diversity of cotton in the region looking for niche markets.

Through the South-South cooperation mechanism, the +Cotton project has developed a model of sustainable system of cotton production, adaptable to other countries and other crops with family farming production. Recovering cotton production systems on a sustainable basis has social implications, which add to the economic and environmental perspective. As a crop resistant to climatic adversities, it can be planted in dry and arid zones, reducing the vulnerability of families to climate change. It can be a valid alternative for communities that inhabit indigenous territories as well as those displaced by conflicts, and where there is a high level of rural poverty.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Ms Adriana Gregolin, Regional Project Coordinator, Regional Office for Latin America and Caribbean, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) | Office of South-South and Triangular Cooperation (OSS), FAO

SDG
02 - Zero Hunger

SUPPORTED BY
Brazilian Cooperation Agency (ABC)

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