Nigeria’s Cotton, Textile Sector Under Severe Strain

…Stakeholders Seek Urgent, Coordinated, Long-Term Reforms

…Warn Ailing CTG Sector Threat To Industrialisation, Livelihoods

LAGOS – Nigeria’s cotton, textile and garment (CTG) sector remained under severe strain in 2025, with stakeholders warn­ing that without urgent, coordinated and long-term reforms, one of the country’s most job-rich industries risk further de­cline despite its proven capacity to drive industrialisation, conserve foreign ex­change and support livelihoods.

Stakeholders in separate interviews with Daily Independent are of the view that the Nigeria’s cotton and textile challenges are rooted not in farmer in­efficiency, but in policy inconsistency, weak market protection and inadequate production financing.

 They pointed out that sustain­able solutions lie in deliberate investment in domestic produc­tion systems that reward farmers, support industry and secure the country’s industrial future, rath­er than recurring emergency imports.

The industry experts also said that the sector’s challenges are not new, but persistent structural weaknesses, policy inconsistency and the withdrawal of key inter­ventions have continued to erode gains made in previous years.

Ado Sule, Director of Admin­istration, National Cotton Asso­ciation of Nigeria (NACOTAN), noted that one of the most critical constraints facing the sector is the lack of high-yielding, locally adapted hybrid cotton seeds.

This, according to him, has resulted in low farm productiv­ity and high production costs, leaving Nigerian cotton far below global yield benchmarks and in­creasingly uncompetitive.

He said that earlier interven­tions showed the sector’s potential, that under the Central Bank of Nigeria’s Anchor Borrowers’ Pro­gramme (ABP), seed cotton pro­duction rose significantly, leading to the revival of about 26 ginneries and the reactivation of segments of the textile value chain.

However, the absence of a sus­tainable transition framework after the programme was with­drawn triggered a sharp decline in output.

By the 2023/2024 season, na­tional seed cotton production had dropped to an estimated 15,000 metric tons, while output for 2024/2025 was projected not to exceed 20,000 metric tons—lev­els far below what is required to keep ginneries and textile mills running sustainably.

Beyond production financing, Sule identified deep-rooted struc­tural constraints across the CTG value chain, including weak fund­ing for cotton seed research, high costs of imported machinery and spare parts, limited access to af­fordable long-term financing, and the absence of internationally recognised High Volume Instru­ment (HVI) testing facilities. The lack of such facilities, he said, results in quality discounting of Nigerian lint in export markets.

He also pointed to power sup­ply challenges, high operating costs, and the persistent smug­gling and dumping of textile products as factors undermining local production.

To reverse the decline, Sule called for a coordinated, long-term strategy to restore confi­dence and scale.

His recommendations includ­ed sustained funding for research institutes, particularly the Insti­tute for Agricultural Research (IAR), Zaria, to develop compet­itive cotton varieties; incentives to build a domestic cotton seed industry; and large-scale land preparation and clearing by agencies such as the National Agricultural Land Development Authority (NALDA) to support mechanised farming.

Other proposals included mechanisation support schemes for smallholder farmers, removal of tariffs on ginning and textile machinery, establishment of HVI laboratories, provision of single-digit, long-tenor financ­ing across the CTG value chain, and the creation of a private-sec­tor-driven CTG Board to coordi­nate policy and align fiscal and monetary interventions.

From the ginning sub-sector, Samuel Oloruntoba, Secretary of the Cotton Ginners Association of Nigeria, described 2025 as a year of further contraction.

He said the sector recorded no significant improvement, as some textile companies that were oper­ating before 2025 shut down, while others were sold outright. Similar outcomes, he added, were record­ed among ginneries.

According to Oloruntoba, the few ginneries still in operation are running at less than 20 per­cent of their installed capacities due to low cotton production.

He also noted that over 80 percent of cotton produced in Nigeria is exported, with export­ers facing challenges that could have been avoided if local textile mills were functional.

He warned that the sector fac­es possible extinction if drastic measures are not taken, stressing that any intervention must be ho­listic and address cotton farming, processing, textile manufacturing and garment production together.

Oloruntoba advocated a 10- year development programme to revive the sector and urged the implementation of the Cot­ton, Textile and Garment Board (CTGB), which was approved by the National Economic Council, last year.

He said the board could help address many of the sector’s chal­lenges if fully operational.

He further emphasised that future agricultural and textile in­terventions must incorporate all stakeholders, including the federal and state governments, research institutes, organised private sector groups, agro-commodity associa­tions and cooperatives, to ensure the synergy needed for success.

He projected that sustained growth in staple crops could help stabilise food prices and provide affordable raw materials for in­dustries.

He also called for intensified mechanisation across the coun­try, improved subsidies for farm inputs such as fertilisers and high-yielding seeds—particularly for cotton farmers—massive in­vestment in irrigation infrastruc­ture to mitigate climate change impacts, and concerted efforts to address insecurity affecting farm­ing communities.

He identified opportunities in the newly approved CTGB, noting that its effective implementation could revive cotton production, resuscitate comatose textile mills and stimulate growth in the gar­ment sub-sector, with significant employment and GDP benefits.

Anibe Achimugu, President, National Cotton Association of Nigeria (NACOTAN), described 2025 as a year of steady but still below-potential performance.

He said the sector showed re­silience despite difficult econom­ic and security conditions, noting that agriculture remained a major pillar of the economy, contribut­ing not less than 30 percent of GDP in the third quarter of 2025, even as the broader economy grew by over three percent year-on-year.

Achimugu stressed that ag­riculture cannot be ignored and called for deliberate, collaborative interventions to ensure the sec­tor consistently performs above expectations.

He observed that government actions are increasingly shifting from statements to systems build­ing, mechanisation, structured input delivery, improved farmer data integrity and stronger coor­dination with states and develop­ment partners.

However, he cautioned that deliberate engagement with commodity associations driven by smallholder farmers must not be overlooked.

He also highlighted the need to link cash crops such as cotton to food security, advocating inter­cropping models that strengthen rural livelihoods by providing access to food staples alongside cash income.

According to him, food securi­ty is ultimately about household resilience.

Achimugu pointed out that the full establishment and effec­tive execution of the CTG Devel­opment Board’s mandate would ensure proper coordination of the cotton, textile and garment value chain—from access to qual­ity seed and extension services to offtake, ginning and mill revival.

He said this would drive job and wealth creation, reduce im­ports, strengthen rural incomes and support inclusive growth objectives.