Cameroon exported 73,283 tonnes of raw cocoa beans in the season to end-November, down slightly from the 80,019 tonnes shipped by the same time last year, according to statistics from the National Cocoa and Coffee Board (NCCB) on Monday.

In the month of November, Cameroon shipped 29,198 tonnes, down from 31,848 tonnes for the same month in 2013, the data showed.

The number of exporters in November rose to 21, up from 20 in October, with Telcar Cocoa topping the list with 9,029 tonnes, according to NCCB.

Farmers in the world's fifth largest cocoa producer attributed the figures to the start of the dry season, which made it easier to dry beans and transport them on roads sometimes impassable in the wet season.

Cocoa is one of the main cash crops of Cameroon. The season runs from Aug. 1 to July 31 with the main harvest period from October to January/February and the low harvest period from April/May to June/July.