Plexus, a British company, the only cotton concessionaire in the country, said it will stop operating in Cabo Delgado province next week, without buying cotton from the 50,000 small producers, writes the news portal, Carta, citing Nick Earlam, head of the company.  

At stake is the level of insecurity that has worsened in recent days in that province due to the terrorist attacks that have been carried out by insurgents.

"Our intelligence suggests that the problems in Cabo Delgado will continue to worsen," said the official quoted by Carta from London at an open meeting at Chatham House.

The source also said that no bank will advance Plexus money for it to buy the cotton, due to the unsafe situation.

The company official said that right now there are 50,000 farmers who are waiting for Plexus to buy their cotton, and if it doesn't happen, "they will be furious." The source says that The only way to end the war is to gain the trust of the people. according to him, "the energy sector must become a partner of Agriculture to gain the trust of the local farmers and bring peace".

It should be noted that Plexus owes money to 48,000 growers whose cotton has not been paid. In all, Plexus said it was $$1.5 million in debt. A few weeks later, the government handed Plexus $2 million to pay the growers and get back into operation.

Information also advanced by Carta indicates that Plexus has not yet informed the executive of its intention to leave Cabo Delgado, just over a week after Syrah Resources, which explores graphite in Balama, resumed operations.

Cotton is known to be the most important source of income for thousands of farmers in the southern districts of Cabo Delgado, particularly Montepuez, Balama, Namuno and Chiure.

In 2020 it was reported that Plexus needed approximately US $10 million to overcome a financial crisis driven by mismanagement. On its website, Plexus says it has a base of 165,000 farmers, and is the largest cotton producer in the country.