Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala
Director-General
7 November 2025
Dear
Ambassadors/Permanent Representatives,
I am enclosing the latest version of the
Evolving Table on Cotton Development Assistance (_WT/CFMC/6/Rev.39) for review by Members in advance of the
next Round of the Director-General's Consultative Framework Mechanism on Cotton
(DGCFMC), scheduled for 19 November 2025.
This Evolving Table (ET) contains project
updates by France, Switzerland and Brazil. In addition, the document includes
updates on projects implemented by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the
United Nations (FAO).
I am pleased to report that the total value
of active cotton-specific projects under Part I, "Cotton-Specific Development
Assistance", now stands at USD 378.4 million. This represents a
significant increase of 15% compared to the previous amount of USD 328.9
million recorded in the last revision of the ET. Furthermore, the disbursement
rate has risen to 42% of total committed funds, up from the previous rate of
26.1%, reflecting a notable improvement in the implementation and use of
resources.
While the total number of active projects
under Part I has risen from 49 to 53, the number of active projects under Part
II, "Agriculture and Infrastructure-Related Development Assistance",
remains unchanged at 33, as in the last revision of the ET.
Part III of the ET lists the cotton focal
points in developing countries, with updates received from Argentina, Benin and
Mozambique.
Part IV of the ET lists the cotton-related
development assistance requests submitted by developing country Members. A
total of 11 project requests have been submitted by Benin, Burkina Faso,
Burundi, Cameroon, Mali and the C-4 group, for consideration.
I also refer you to the latest version of the
Table on Domestic Cotton Sector Reforms (_WT/CFMC/21/Rev.23), which
contains updates received from Benin.
The 44th Round of the DGCFMC will
be held on 19 November 2025, starting at 10 a.m. The 24th Dedicated
Discussion of the Relevant Trade-Related Developments on Cotton will take place
in the afternoon of the same day, starting at 3 p.m.
The enclosed document will form the basis for
the 44th Round of Consultations of the DGCFMC
Yours sincerely,
Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala