Cotton factory resumes production

A cotton factory in the town of Bambari, northeastern Central African Republic, has resumed production after its operations were suspended in October 2002 due to fighting between rebels and government troops, Radio Centrafrique reported on Sunday. The radio reported that a team from the Ministry of Agriculture and the state corporation Societe Centrafricaine de Developpement des Textiles (Socadetex) was touring eastern Ouaka and Kemo provinces to supervise the gathering of cotton and the resumption of ginning in the factory. Bambari is 385 km northeast of the capital, Bangui. Cotton is the highest revenue-generating crop for farmers in the north and central parts of the country. Its production was seriously affected by the fighting that took place between October 2002 and March 2003, pitting government troops against fighters loyal to the current leader Francois Bozize. The Socadetex factory in Bossangoa, 305 km north of Bangui, was looted during the war. The war ended when Bozize ousted President Ange-Felix Patasse on 15 March. The radio reported that the visiting agricultural team distributed seeds and insecticides to farmers in Ouaka and Kemo provinces. The team also assessed roads that need urgent repair in order to facilitate cotton transportation to the Bambari factory. In May, the Minister for Agriculture, Pierre Gbianza, announced that the neighbouring countries of Chad and Cameroon had agreed to buy and gin cotton from the country.