Ethiopia Recognises Coffee Farmers, Exporters after Record Breaking Year
President Shale-work Zewde has lauded the key players in coffee production and export after Ethiopia garnered a historic-high revenue from export.
Ethiopia earned 1.4 billion US dollars from 300,000tons of coffee exported to the international market during the 2021/22 Fiscal year.
Both the revenue and volume of export grew by 53.82% (or $488.14 million) and 20.54% (or 51,002.66tn), respectively, breaking the records set in the previous year.
The Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority organized a recognition and reward program under the theme “our coffee for our unity and prosperity” on September 15, 2022.
At least 200 high-achieving coffee farmers, processors, unions and exporters recieved awards and reconitions from President Sahle-Work and other top officials.
In her speech, President Sahle-Work acknowledged the coffee market stakeholders for their contribution.
Recognizing their work and effort will generate great potential in the future, she added.
President Sahle-Work further explained that “it has opened the door for the private sector to play a paramount role … a country’s development depends also on the private sector”.
The revenue generated from Coffee export accounted for 35% of Ethiopia’s foreign exchange earnings last year.
“Coffee’s value is beyond increasing export production; it connects people and communities, it’s a place for discussion, for exchanging ideas, it connects neighbors,” Sahle-work said.
The President thanked the various stakeholders who supported the farmers and the initiative as a whole and highlighted the importance of taking Ethiopian coffee to new heights by motivating farmers and providing them with opportunities to access global markets.
The ceremony recognised 40 winning smallholder coffee farmers who participated in the Cup of Excellence auction and whose coffee was of highest quality.
USAID and MS4G were among those that received special recognition for supporting the Cup of Excellence over the past three years.
The 2022 Ethiopia Cup of Excellence, a competition and auction, brought in a record-breaking $1.3 million auction for the country’s best coffee. Around 170 buyers from 23 countries registered and received samples to participate in the auction.
This year’s winner, Legesse Botasa, received the highest price ever recorded for Ethiopian coffee. His coffee sold at a staggering price of $400.50 per $884.10 per kilogram (ETB 47,236.23) and the other half of the same coffee sold for $400 per pound.
The record-breaking result of this year’s competition has raised expectations and motivated hundreds of farmers to produce better quality coffee and compete at the global level.
Ethiopia plans to increase its annual coffee export this year to 360,000 tons and secure 1.8 billion US dollars.
Follow us on:
YOUTUBE FACEBOOK TELEGRAM GOOGLE NEWS TWITTER INSTAGRAM PINTEREST :
Subscribe and Follow us via Email
If you have any comment regarding this article contact us at contact@ethiopianstoday.com
