The headquarters of the organization supporting fair cotton production in Africa is located in the north of Hamburg and has eight employees. It is here at the Aid by Trade Foundation (AbTF) that threads run together for the largest public-private partnership project in current German development cooperation: the Cotton made in Africa (CmiA) initiative.
In 2005 textile retailers, such as the Otto Group, joined forces with public sponsors including the international cooperation agency GIZ (Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit) and the German investment and development agency DEG (Deutsche Investitions- und Entwicklungsgesellschaft) as well as NGOs such as German Agro Action - Deutsche Welthungerhilfe, WWF and the Nature and Biodiversity Union (NABU). Together they want to help African cotton farmers to produce their cotton more economically and more ecologically, and thus improve the living conditions of their families.
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