• Africa accounted for about 3.3 million bales of Bangladesh cotton imports
• Bangladesh imported 8.05 million bales, up 6.2% year on year
• Benin, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Mali led African supplies

In 2024/2025, Bangladesh sourced 41% of its cotton imports from Africa, or about 3.3 million bales, according to the latest report by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) on the global fiber market. Over the August 2024 to July 2025 season, the South Asian country imported a total of 8.05 million bales of cotton (one bale equals about 220 kg), up 6.2% from the previous year.

This volume made Bangladesh the world’s largest cotton importer, narrowly ahead of Vietnam, which bought 100,000 fewer bales, and well ahead of China, with imports of 5.19 million bales. The rise in purchases confirms the recovery of the textile industry following the slowdown caused by the Covid-19 crisis. Bangladesh, one of the world’s largest garment exporters, depends on international markets for about 98% of its cotton needs due to still limited domestic production of around 155,000 bales.

According to the USDA, Benin, Cameroon, Burkina Faso, and Mali were the main African suppliers to Bangladesh, which also sourced cotton from Brazil (25%) and India (15%). For the 2025/2026 season, the U.S. agency estimates that Vietnam could become the world’s top cotton importer with 8.1 million bales, compared with 8 million bales for Bangladesh by July.

Pending further revisions to forecasts in the coming months, the USDA expects Bangladesh to benefit from its strong reliance on the European Union market, which accounts for 50% of its total ready-to-wear clothing sales, where it enjoys duty-free access at least until 2029. This comes as the country faces U.S. tariffs of 20%.

While this environment could further support cotton consumption, plans by several West African countries to increase local value addition through investments in textiles and garment manufacturing could gradually limit export prospects for these suppliers. In Benin, for example, authorities plan to process almost all domestic cotton fiber output by 2032, with nearly 28 additional integrated textile units at the Glo-Djigbé Industrial Zone (GDIZ), located about 40 km from Cotonou.

Even so, observers expect Bangladesh’s textile industry to remain attractive for global exporters. According to the USDA, the country currently uses about 8.5 million bales of cotton but could consume up to 15 million bales, supported by a network of around 4,500 factories employing nearly 4 million people. Bangladesh exported $39.3 billion worth of ready-to-wear garments in 2024/2025, including trousers, T-shirts, knit shirts, sweaters, blouses, and underwear.

Espoir Olodo