(Ecofin Agency) - Due to off-season rains, Mali’s Compagnie malienne pour le développement du textile (CMDT) said announced it was suspending cotton-ginning in most producing regions.

“Since we cannot harvest rain-soaked cotton, we must let it dry before harvesting and this will slow down ginning”, Abdoulaye Dolo, CMDT’s number two, said at the national radio. Executives did not say how long the pause will last but according to analysts, this could push back the end of season which should normally end on March 31^st.

It is not the first time that rains affect Mali’s cotton harvest. Last year, due to late rains, the country could not achieve its production target. Truly, whilst it aimed to achieve a production of 650,000 tons, it could only reach 550,370 tons Reuters says.

Aaron Akinocho