UGANDA – The Government of Uganda is currently exploring the possibility of exporting a significant portion of its coffee to Turkey, a move aimed at tapping into larger markets such as Russia and the United States.

Uganda’s Ambassador to Turkey, Nusurah Tiperu, convened a meeting last Thursday at Serena Hotel in Kampala with stakeholders across the coffee value chain to strategize and discuss these expansion plans.

During the meeting, Tiperu highlighted the dominance of Ugandan coffee aroma in major Turkish supermarkets, despite the lack of clear labeling identifying it as Ugandan. 

“There is nothing labeled as Ugandan. They tell you it comes from Mexico but the aroma is as though it is from Mbale,” said Tiperu.

She emphasized the need for Ugandan exporters to establish partnerships or agents in Turkey to rectify this issue.

Tiperu outlined Turkey’s strategic importance as a meeting hub, where Russian and American businesses frequently convene.

Moreover, Tiperu encouraged Ugandan exporters to explore joint ventures and business-to-business opportunities with Turkish counterparts, pledging to facilitate the entry of Ugandan coffee into Turkey.

She also advocated for collaboration between the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA), the Ministry of Agriculture, Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF), and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to establish a legal framework enabling Uganda to export a quarter of its coffee to Turkey.

Veronica Najjemba, Manager of Value Addition and Promotion at UCDA, highlighted Turkey’s sizable population of 85 million and its substantial coffee consumption of 1.3 million bags.

She emphasized that while Turkey primarily imports coffee from other countries like Brazil, Netherlands, Germany, and Bulgaria, it also re-exports to larger markets such as Russia, Syria, Libya, Belarus, and the United States.

“Our coffee can easily go through Turkey. This means that Turkey, therefore, provides a unique opportunity to showcase and market the uniqueness of Uganda’s coffee,” she added

In the past coffee production season, Uganda’s coffee exports totaled 6.8 million bags.

However, despite exporting some coffee to Turkey, sector players believe that Uganda has not fully maximized the potential this market offers.

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