Café Africa R.D.Congo established 2010

The coffee sector for the Democratic Republic of Congo

The coffee sector in the Democratic Republic of Congo used to be one of the main drivers of the economy. In the major producing provinces, Bas-Congo, Bandundu, Equateur North and South, Kasai, North Kivu and Oriental Province, coffee was widely considered as being the main source of household disposable income. While this image still remains in the minds of many farmers, the intervening years of civil strife, neglect of the transport infrastructure, the government’s inability to support and fund the agricultural extension services, and the ravages of CWD (coffee wilt disease), have reduced production drastically. It is estimated that there are about 800,000 households involved in coffee production.

Café Africa’s achievements and recent projects

Building Relationships

Café Africa in the République Démocratique du Congo (CARDC) was founded in 2010 with the aim of revitalising the coffee and cocoa sub-sectors by increasing production, while also improving the livelihood of small-scale producers.

To attain its objectives, CARDC has built relationships internally and externally, which has led to CARDC becoming a recognised encourager of cooperative working between participants in the coffee and cocoa value chains within the RDC. Our main areas of intervention since establishment have been:

Promotion of Public/ Private Partnerships among industry stakeholders
Advocacy and Agricultural Development
Implementation of Coffee and Cocoa Projects
Training and Capacity-Building

Increasing global demand for RDC Robusta, coupled with the volatile price of Arabica, highlight the need to boost Robusta production in RDC. CARDC is actively seeking partnerships with organisations that can foster the sustainable growth of Robusta coffee production, ensuring a consistent supply of high-quality beans, to the ultimate benefit of the entire value chain.

Karawa Coffee Project, 2018 to date

The Karawa Coffee Project (KCP), funded by the Paul Carlson Partnership, has aimed to develop the production and marketing of Robusta in the Ubangi region (north west RDC). Between 2018 and 2022 CARDC, the project coordinator, trained 2,188 registered producers and organised them into a cooperative (FUPROCAF) to ensure the continuation of the project’s aims.

There has been marked success in the development of a strong local market. The 100 tonne increase in KCP’s harvest in 2022 was almost entirely absorbed by the local market. Traditional consumers in rural areas such as Ubangi, local roasters, and a growing class of young urban professionals are among the drivers of the current trend in domestic consumption.

This success has led to participating farmers wishing to increase their holdings, plus many new farmers across a wider area wanting to join the project. The current aim is to add a further 5,000 farmers and plant an additional 2,500,000 seedlings which, within 4 years of planting, should enable them to produce and sell around 2,500 tons of coffee. CARDC will work with the Paul Carlson Partnership and FUPROCAF on the training of new farmers and the cultivation of the seedlings.

Finance for this expansion will partly come through the sale of a small amount of coffee donated by each participating farmer, and partly through donors or financial partners interested in investing in RDC coffee. For more details of the seedling project and the opportunity to partner financially, please click here: Karawa Coffee Project 2024 Update

Partnership working in 2023-24

Stakeholders’ Coffee Breakfast, Kinshasa

Working with the exporters’ association ASSECCAF, and the Congolese Women in Coffee-Cocoa Initiative (IFCCA), CARDC facilitated a breakfast discussion in September 2023 between delegates from the public, private, diplomatic and non-governmental sectors on improving collaboration across the coffee value chain. This exchange of ideas was vital for building on the advocacy work being undertaken by ASSECCAF on improving the business environment. It sparked renewed interest among stakeholders for regular meetings.

Café Africa Breakfast at the AFCA Conference and Exhibition, Addis Ababa

CARDC, CAU and CATZ hosted representatives from across the coffee value chain at a breakfast during the AFCA (African Fine Coffees Association) Conference in February 2024. CARDC gave a presentation on the Karawa Coffee Project (2018-22) which had successfully increased production and consumption of Robusta in north west RDC (see below). The breakfast was an opportunity to link current and prospective partners, encouraging collaboration and exchange within the coffee industry.

Agribusiness & Environment Workshop at the Belgian Week Expo, Kinshasa

This workshop in October 2023 focused on the problem of sedentary crops in emerging value chains. CARDC shared the lessons learned from cooperative initiatives in eastern RDC, and how they could be applied to the revitalisation of the coffee sector in western RDC.

Training and Capacity-Building in 2023

CARDC revisited two producers’ organisations that it had previously helped establish, in order to evaluate the cooperatives’ performance, growth, and impact on members’ livelihoods:

– Fédération des Unions de Producteurs du Café de l’Ubangi (FUPROCAF-UBANGI), a cooperative created under the Karawa Coffee Project funded by the Paul Carlson Partnership, in a programme aimed at sustainable development and marketing of Robusta in North-Western RDC (see below). For an update on the expansion of the Karawa Coffee Project, please see above.

– Union des Associations de Planteurs du Café Lavé de Mayombe (UAPCLM). This cooperative was formed under the EU-funded AIDCOM Programme to rehabilitate the production of the “Petit Kwilu” variety in the Mayombe region in the province of Kongo Central (see below)

“Petit Kwilu” Coffee Varietal Market Feasibility Study around the Luki Biosphere Reserve in South-West RDC

At the request of the World Wildlife Fund, CARDC conducted a study on the potential for the Petite Kwilu variety of Coffea Canephora (Robusta) to be used as an income-generating activity, while preserving the biodiversity of the landscape at the Luke Biosphere Reserve. This produced a number of recommendations, for discussion about future interventions in the area.