Addis Ababa – Qahwa World × Buna Kurs
African governments, international institutions, and private sector leaders convened today in Addis Ababa for the High-Level Policy Forum held during the Third African Coffee Week. The assembly issued a strong call for coordinated action to safeguard the future of Africa’s coffee sector amid escalating climate and market pressures.
Organized by the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO)—the African Union’s specialized agency for coffee—in collaboration with UNIDO, the Forum is being held under the theme: “Advancing Climate Resilience and the Transformation of the African Coffee Sector.” The event, hosted at the Skylight Hotel, brings together ministers, ambassadors, development partners, regulators, researchers, and industry executives from across Africa and beyond.
In the opening session, senior representatives of the Ethiopian government, IACO member states, the African Union, UN agencies, and international partners underscored the strategic importance of coffee to Africa’s economies and export earnings. While coffee supports millions of smallholder farmers across the continent, it faces growing risks from climate change, regulatory shifts, and limited local value addition.
The High-Level Policy Forum is anchored in the ACT Programme (Advancing Climate-Resilience and Transformation of the African Coffee Sector), a continental framework structured around five key pillars:
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Climate resilience
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Value addition and industrial transformation
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Compliance with international market standards
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Research, innovation, and knowledge sharing
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Social inclusion and sustainable livelihoods
Day One discussions focused on five outcome-oriented policy panels, each aimed at producing actionable recommendations and investment pathways:
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The First Panel addressed social inclusion, emphasizing the need to place farmers, women, and youth at the center of sector transformation. Speakers highlighted inclusive business models, access to finance, and skills development as essential to long-term resilience in coffee-growing communities.
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The Second Panel examined value addition, noting that Africa still exports the majority of its coffee as green beans. Panelists discussed the investments needed to expand local processing, roasting, and branding, specifically looking at opportunities under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).
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The Third Panel was dominated by climate resilience and adaptation. Experts outlined climate-smart production systems, agroforestry, and the role of climate finance in supporting smallholder farmers, stressing that adaptation must move from pilot projects to scalable, financed solutions.
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The Fourth Panel focused on research and innovation, calling for the integration of scientific data and digital tools into policymaking. Regional collaboration and South–South knowledge exchange were identified as key enablers of quality improvement.
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The Final Panel addressed market access and compliance, with particular attention to the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR). Speakers discussed traceability systems and how harmonized African standards can transform compliance from a barrier into a competitive advantage.
The day concluded with the official launch of the African Coffee Sustainability Standards, led by the African Organisation for Standardisation (ARSO)—a milestone aimed at strengthening market access and regulatory alignment for African producers.
The High-Level Policy Forum continues tomorrow, focusing on consolidating policy recommendations and partnership commitments under the ACT Programme.
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