ABIDJAN, July 31 (Reuters) - Ivory Coast has revised the forecast for its 2014-15 cotton production higher to at least 450,000 tonnes, from 420,000 tonnes previously on the back of a bumper crop harvest, the head of the cotton profession association said on Thursday.

The country - the world biggest cocoa producer - was also one of West Africa's major cotton exporters, with an annual output of about 400,000 tonnes, before a 2002-2003 civil war split the country in two and halved production.

Output has been rising steadily over the past five years, and authorities announced plans in June to boost production to 600,000 tonnes in the next two years.

"We produced 405,000 tonnes in the last season. For 2014-15, we are expecting over 450,000 tonnes," Lacina Tuo, the president of Intercoton, told a news conference.

"If the rains hold steady, we could have a record production this year because farmers were very motivated," Tuo said, adding that farmers received inputs that have helped boost output.

Cotton planting in Ivory Coast generally starts in the second half of May with the first rains, and harvesting begins slowly in late October before picking up sharply in December. (Reporting by Loucoumane Coulibaly; Writing by Bate Felix; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)