UGANDA – The Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) remains committed to achieving its ambitious target of producing 20 million coffee bags by 2030, as outlined in the Coffee Roadmap.
However, Gerald Kyalo, Director of Development Services at UCDA, has cautioned that limited government funding for seedling distribution could pose a significant obstacle to this goal.
The roadmap, launched in 2017 and signed by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, aims to increase Uganda’s coffee production to 20 million 60 kg bags by 2030, with an expected annual foreign exchange earning of US$1.5 billion.
The roadmap has been a driving force behind the recent growth in Uganda’s coffee sub-sector, supported by efforts across the entire coffee value chain.
Meanwhile, the industry is awaiting the implementation of the European Union’s (EU) ban on deforestation-related products, set to take effect in approximately 150 days.
The new regulation will require Ugandan coffee exporters to trace their products from farm to market, necessitating detailed knowledge about coffee producers, their locations, and the types of coffee they grow
Exporters will need to provide a due diligence certificate with GPS coordinates to comply with these requirements.
Kyalo has called on coffee stakeholders to expedite preparations to meet the EU’s stringent regulations.
He emphasized the importance of establishing a national Value Chain Actors (VCA) register as a precursor to creating a national traceability system that aligns with the EU Deforestation Regulation (EUDR).
Despite these challenges, Uganda’s coffee sector has recently achieved a historic milestone, earning US$1.144 billion from the export of 6.13 million bags of coffee in the 2023/2024 financial year.
The UCDA credits this success to stringent regulatory measures and the enhanced quality of Ugandan coffee.
The world coffee production for 2024/25 is forecast to increase by 7.1 million bags from the previous year to 176.2 million due primarily to continued recovery in Brazil and rebounding output in Indonesia.
With additional supplies, global exports are expected to increase by 3.6 million bags to 123.1 million primarily on strong shipments from Indonesia and Brazil.
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