Announcement of 6.2 Million Dollars Credit to Increase Cotton Growing in Upper Volta on December 23, 1970

. ·:·:· · ·) (~1,'\n ·I:,~~'- • INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT ASSOCIATION 1818 H STREET. N.W .. WASHINGTON 0. C. 20433 TELEPHONE: EXECUTIVE 3-6360 IDA Press Release No. 70/59 Subject: 06.2 million credit to increase December 23, 1970 cotton growing in Upper Volta T:i.e International Development Association (!DA), of the World Bank Group, has approved a $6.2 million credit for an agricultural project in Upper Volta that is expected to raise the cash incomes of an estimated 46,000 cotton farmers and their families and 9 upon completion, add to the nation's export earnings an average of $4.4 million annually. The project is intended to increase cotton production in the western • section of the country by expanding the area unde:'' cultivation and raising productivity. The ftmds will be used to improve credit, extension and marketing institutions and services; provide processing facilities; reha.bilitate 500 miles of feeder roads and provide detailed engineering for about 60 miles of secondary roads; and study the feasibility of developing cotton production in an adjacent area. Upper Volta is located north of Ghana and the Ivory Coast in West Africa. It has few resources and its agricultural and livestock sectors -- the livelihood of 90% of the population -- are hampered by poor soil, inadequate water and a relatively low farming technology. Livestock accotmts for more than half of the country's exports. Cotton is one of Upper Volta's must promising crops for improving the standard of living of a large segment of the rural population and it has become • increasingly important as a foreign exchange earner. The nation's foreign sales ~ of lint and cottonseed have grown rapidly, rising from less than 10% of total exports in 1965 to almost 20% in 1968. /more IDA P.R. No. 70/59 - Upper Volta - agriculture - 2 - Cotton growing was introduced into the country less than two decades ago • by Compagnie Francaise pour le Develcppement des Fibres Textiles and develop- ment up to now has been financed largely by the French Government. The $9. 4 million project which the IDA credit is assisting is a new 1_:hase of this long-term cotton development program. The project aims at expanding the land under cotton cultivation from approximately 116,000 to 189j000 acres by 1975 and improving yields from 555 to 775 pounds per acre in the project area. Farmers' annual net returns are e~pected to increase approximately 50% as a result. Upper Volta's P~nistry of Agriculture will be responsible for implementing the project, with completion scheduled for 1975. The $6.2 million IDA credit to the Republic of Upper Volta is for a term • of 50 years, including a 10-year grace period. It will be interest free but a service charge of 3/4 of 1% will be made to cover IDA's administrative costs. The French Government has agreed in principle to contributions to the project totaling the equivalent of approximately $1,750,000 by Fonds d'A:i.de et de Cooperation anc Caisse Centrale pour la Cooperation Economique. The balance of the project's financing will be provided by the Government of Upper Volta, approximately $1,150,000 equivalent, and by cotton farmers, approximately $300,000 equivalent. - 0 - •