Reversing Coffee Production Decline

Café Africa was formed in 2006, at a time when Africa’s coffee production was in sharp decline. In 1975, Africa exported about 18.5 million bags of coffee, over 25% of coffee global exports.  That figure had fallen dramatically so that even by 2016/17, exports were only at 11.6 million bags, about 9.5% of global exports. There had been many contributing factors.

As many African governments withdrew from the coffee sector in the 1990’s, gaps were left in the organisation of the value chain. In countries such as the DRC, civil war and diseased coffee trees decimated production. In others, such as Tanzania, aging coffee plantations and aging farmers produced limited yields. Coffee prices plummeted between 2000 and 2004, resulting in a reduced capacity to address what have compounded into industry-wide challenges.

Yet global coffee demand was on the rise and coffee remained a vital source of income for rural households and a sustainable way out of poverty. A few countries in Africa, notably Uganda, were showing that with the right political support and an enabling environment for private sector investment, coffee production could still be profitable for the farmers, and benefit the national economy.

Opportunity and Bounce-Back

Global demand for coffee is growing by about 2% per year. Consumption is expected to reach 200 million bags by 2030.

This is being driven by growth in many emerging markets, from the Far East, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe.  Many producing countries are themselves drinking more coffee. In traditional markets, the gourmet sector continues to show good growth, with improved quality and better coffee-making equipment and single serve systems.

Africa benefits from two key elements: the fine qualities coming from several origins, and the supply of land, labour and water in several countries.  The encouraging growth in exports to 1.18m tonnes in 2024/25 shows that Africa’s coffee producers can be fully competitive with those of other continents. This can create the rural employment opportunities which will slow the rural exodus.

Future challenges will be: to maintain and improve levels of productivity in line with competing regions; to manage the competition from other agricultural crops, especially food, as the population continues to grow; to adapt to the threat of climate change and to respond proactively to the need for regenerative agricultural practices.