Ouagadougou, Burkina-Faso – The United States Government, through the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), and the Commission of the West African Economic and Monetary Union (UEMOA) today announced a new partnership to advance the UEMOA Cotton Agenda for a more productive and competitive cotton sector in West Africa.

USAID will provide up to U.S. $1.2 million of support over the next four years to enable UEMOA to lead the further development of the cotton sector in West Africa.  They are partnering to establish a regional stakeholder platform to develop priorities for strengthening the West African cotton sector, promote strategic cotton sector partnerships, and strengthen policies and practices that will promote women’s participation in, and benefits from, cotton sector development.

The agreement was signed by the U.S. Ambassador to Burkina Faso, Tulinabo S. Mushingi, the USAID/West Africa Regional Mission Director, Alex Deprez, and the President of UEMOA Commission, M. Cheickhe Hadjibou Soumaré.

"Bringing West African cotton to a more competitive level will require attention to improved technology for greater yields and post-harvest quality, attention to the organic cotton sector, and the needs for certification and branding to promote West African cotton,” said Ambassador Tulinabo S. Mushingi at the signing ceremony.