BAMAKO, June 1 (Reuters) - Mali produced 700,000 tonnes of cotton in the 2019/2020 season, around 6.6% more than the previous year, state-owned Malian Company for Textile Development (CMDT) said on Monday.

Mali is one of four cotton producers in sub-Saharan Africa, alongside Chad, Benin and Burkina Faso. CMDT’s target for next season is 820,000 tonnes, Chief Executive Baba Berthe said.

Mali’s cotton season runs from April to March in two phases: production between May/June and September/October, and a harvesting and marketing phase that runs from October/November to the end of March. (Reporting by Tiemoko Diallo Writing by Alessandra Prentice; Editing by Susan Fenton)