Four-year, multimillion dollar program to provide education and support for developing countries.

Brazil has signed an agreement with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) to pass on its cotton cultivation techniques to other countries in South America.

Under the agreement, the Brazilian Government will offer training and technical assistance to small cotton farmers in other developing countries, especially in South America and Haiti, during the next four years.

The program aims to transfer the successful cotton-growing techniques utilized by Brazilian farmers to other countries, which would bring greater incomes and a better quality of life to their counterparts in other countries.

Under the project, the interests and needs of each participating country would first be identified, prior to providing training and technical assistance.

So far, Paraguay, Peru and Bolivia have expressed interest in participating in the program. The first meeting to formulate projects for individual countries is likely to get underway this month.

The Brazilian Association of Cotton Producers (ABRAPA) and Brazilian Agricultural Research Corporation (EMBRAPA) will provide technology for the program, while the Brazilian Cotton Institute (IBA) will invest $10 million in it.

Another $10 million will be provided in the form of administrative and operational support by the Brazilian Cooperation Agency of the Ministry of Foreign Relations.

Currently, Brazilian cotton production stands at an average of 1.5 million tons per year, next only to China, India, the United States and Pakistan. In comparison, Argentina, the second-largest cotton producer in South America, grows only about 160,000 tons of cotton annually.

Source: Fibre2Fashion