From K375 per Kg to K420 per kilogram, cotton farmers are upbeat about the increased price of the cash crop. The increase comes after 2 market seasons have passed with the prior price being operational.

For K45 increment happens to be K120 more than what traders were offering to vulnerable farmers before the marketing season started in in April.

Meanwhile, as the cotton market is operational for the next 90 days, the cotton sales are expected to spike due to the price increment. Last year, sales plunged because of pests which attacked the crop due to a dry spell, as well as farmers who had given up on the crop due to lower prices.

In May of 2018, the Ministry of Agriculture, Irrigation and Water Development, introduced a new cotton strategy that was aimed at improving the production of cotton by 2023. At the presentation, it was admitted that the cotton industry has faced many challenges that lead to poor sales and production in the last 4 years, but Government promised that to make it a mission to restore the cash crop back on the market.