By Frank Kamuntu
Uganda is gearing up to host the prestigious 2nd G-25 Africa Coffee Summit (ACS) which is set to be a platform for showcasing the continent’s vast coffee potential in the world.
The conference organized by the Ministry of Agriculture Animal Industry and Fisheries (MAAIF) in collaboration with the Inter-Africa Coffee Organization (IACO) will be at Speke Resort Munyonyo, from 7th to 10th of August, 2023 under the theme “Transforming the African Coffee Sector through Value Addition”.
The summit of the 25 African coffee-producing countries will bring together Heads of State, Senior Government Ministers, Heads of College Authorities, Senior Ministers from African Coffee-Consuming Countries, and African private sector groups including farmers, processors, exporters, roasters and Coffee Associations.
The main purpose of the Summit is to continue to marshal consensus on a declaration of coffee as a strategic commodity in harmony with the African Union (AU) agenda 2063.
According to a statement released on Thursday by the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA), the summit will also be premised on promoting value addition, and domestic consumption.
This will be done through educating people about coffee and its benefits to health, expand regional regional trade coffee under the framework of African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) and share knowledge about eminent danger that climate change poses on coffee, as well as the effect that the global pandemic COVID 19 has had on the coffee sector from seed to cup.
The Privilege of hosting the 2nd African Coffee Summit in Uganda gives the country an unrivalled opportunity to market the country’s coffee to a number of African countries and deepen economic integration. The 1st G-25 African Coffee Summit was held in Nairobi, Kenya on May 25th, 2022.
