High coffee prices boost profits for Africa’s biggest exporter

Uganda’s coffee revenue has more than doubled in the past 12 months as a government program to boost production coincides with rising global prices

Uganda has been pursuing a decade-long program to quadruple coffee production to 20 million 60-kilogram bags. To achieve this goal, the government has distributed seedlings to farmers, spent resources on improving soil fertility, regenerating trees, and training farmers.

These efforts are starting to pay off for Africa’s largest coffee exporter. The country earned $2.22 billion in the 12 months to June, up from $1.14 billion a year earlier. Shipments rose 27 percent to 7.77 million bags, according to a report from the coffee department of the Ministry of Agriculture. That puts it on track to meet its target of 9 million bags this marketing season.

Exports jumped more than 50% in June to 1.01 million bags, the country’s highest monthly shipment ever. In monetary terms, exports rose 78% to $289.6 million.

“High prices have stimulated production and motivated people to plant the crop,” says Martin Maraka, executive director of the Uganda Coffee Federation, an umbrella group for exporters. “We will see export volumes continue to grow. This is just the beginning, and there is no stopping this momentum.”

Uganda mainly produces robusta coffee.

Tags: coffee, Уганда