Executive Summary

Africa possesses many of the resources needed to become a globally competitive player in the cotton, textile and apparel (CTA) industry. The continent is a major producer of cotton, has a growing consumer market, increasing manufacturing capabilities, and now benefits from the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA), which provides an unprecedented framework for regional economic integration. Despite these advantages, Africa continues to capture only a small share of the value generated from its cotton production because production, processing, manufacturing, logistics, and trade remain fragmented across countries.

This policy brief argues that Africa’s competitiveness will depend not on producing more cotton, but on strengthening coordination across the entire cotton-to-clothing value chain. Rather than viewing cotton production, textile manufacturing, apparel production, logistics, and trade as separate activities, African countries should develop integrated regional production ecosystems that leverage each country’s comparative advantage while creating greater value addition, employment, investment, and export opportunities.

Key Findings

The brief identifies fragmentation as one of the greatest barriers to industrial transformation within Africa’s CTA sector. Weak linkages between cotton production, textile processing, garment manufacturing, logistics, and supporting industries have limited the continent’s ability to compete globally and maximise the benefits of AfCFTA. As a result, much of Africa’s cotton continues to be exported in raw form, while higher-value manufacturing activities occur outside the continent.

The study highlights that successful industrialisation depends on building integrated production ecosystems rather than isolated factories. Regional value chains allow countries to specialise according to their comparative advantages, reduce duplication of investments, improve economies of scale, attract manufacturing investment, and create stronger industrial linkages across borders. Such coordination also strengthens supply chain resilience and improves Africa’s competitiveness in global markets.

AfCFTA provides the institutional framework needed to support this transformation by expanding market access, reducing barriers to regional trade, and encouraging cross-border industrial collaboration. However, market integration alone will not deliver industrial transformation unless it is supported by coordinated industrial policies, infrastructure investments, and institutional cooperation.

Policy Recommendations

To accelerate the development of integrated regional CTA value chains, the brief recommends several strategic actions:

• Develop Regional CTA Industrial Masterplans to identify comparative advantages, coordinate production across countries, and promote regional specialisation rather than duplication of industrial activities.
• Establish Industrial Coordination Platforms that bring together governments, manufacturers, investors, financial institutions, logistics providers, development partners, and industry associations to align investments, address bottlenecks, and support implementation of regional value chain strategies.
• Invest in Industrial Infrastructure Corridors that connect production zones, processing facilities, manufacturing hubs, logistics networks, and export gateways. Infrastructure investments should support regional production systems rather than isolated national markets.
• Strengthen Industrial Cluster Development by promoting integrated textile parks, apparel manufacturing hubs, supplier networks, and stronger linkages between industry, research institutions, and skills development providers. Cluster development should focus on building complete production ecosystems rather than standalone industrial estates.
• Align Trade, Industrial and Investment Policies to ensure coherence between trade facilitation, industrial incentives, infrastructure planning, investment promotion, skills development, and regulatory frameworks. Better policy coordination will improve the effectiveness of AfCFTA implementation and strengthen regional production systems.
• Support SME Integration by expanding access to finance, supplier development programmes, certification support, digital tools, and market linkages, enabling small and medium-sized enterprises to participate effectively in regional value chains.

Conclusion

Africa’s cotton, textile and apparel sector stands at a pivotal moment. While the continent has significant production capacity and now benefits from the opportunities presented by AfCFTA, achieving meaningful industrial transformation will require a shift from fragmented production towards coordinated regional value chains.

The policy brief concludes that Africa’s future competitiveness will be determined less by the volume of cotton it produces and more by its ability to connect production systems, coordinate investments, strengthen institutions, and build integrated manufacturing ecosystems. Governments, regional institutions, the private sector, and development partners must therefore work together to align industrial, trade, investment, and infrastructure policies around shared regional objectives.

AfCFTA provides the foundation for this transformation, but realising its full potential will depend on deliberate industrial coordination and sustained collaboration across the continent. By embracing integrated cotton-to-clothing value chains, Africa can create more jobs, attract greater investment, diversify exports, strengthen regional resilience, and position itself as a globally competitive manufacturing hub.

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