Kampala, Uganda: Speaking during Stakeholders’ engagement on value addition organized by Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA) on Tuesday, Jacklene Arinda a.k.a Madam CEO the Chief Executive Officer of Jada Coffee urged fellow players to handle two matters with care if the sub sector is to thrive.
Today’s engagement at Protea Hotel Kampala Skyz was focused on how players can tackle the challenges faced in the value addition journey, opportunities for youth in the sector and ways to grow domestic coffee consumption.
Important to note.
Coffee is the Uganda’s leading cash crop.
Uganda exported 6.26 million bags of coffee in the 12 months of Financial Year 2021/22 worth US$ 862.28 million.
Jacklene Arinda said that there is need to create demand for coffee and support for coffee processing sector.
“If coffee is still branded for corporates, a certain age and does not reach the local people, we shall lose potential market that even if its price goes down, there will still be a gap in its consumption”. She stated.
“There is need to market coffee along the mind of coffee being for everyone”. She added.
She cited that there is a lot of negative health comments attached to drinking coffee for example some say that coffee makes women dry others say, it has caffeine but has research proven so, do we have have research done showing that this is a reality?.
“All these comments should be put into consideration, researched on and addressed”. she stated.
“Sensitizing only producers and key players in the sector is not enough alone as this should be done to also consumers and research needs to be conducted to establish what kind of coffee, quality, quantity should be taken for which group of people and age. Said Arinda.
She also noted that there is need to draw coffee market strategy backed by comprehensive financial report that will support a standard price to suit Ugandan market in order to make coffee consumable but also affordable for every market.
“This will determine how much lower a cup of coffee can go for, how much a certain weight of coffee can cost. For example, other beverages have a fixed prices and therefore their market is guaranteed”. She stated.
She re-emphasized that there is need to invest in sensitizing consumers and the entire coffee value chain by readily availing relevant information.
The engagement the 14, September 2022 stakeholders’ meeting with Uganda’s President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni at State House, Entebbe to discuss how to boost value addition in the coffee industry.
The meeting was attended by actors in the coffee value chain that included farmers, traders and processors.
In the meeting, it was agreed that key stakeholders shall keep engaged and develop a paper advising how value addition could be attained for all Ugandan coffee investors to benefit fairly from the industry.
Arinda informed fellow players that involving the youth in the entire value chain is a magic bullet to achieve the prospect citing that they are energetic and capacitated to execute the best.
Coffee is now one of the indispensable cash crops human needs to live longer and therefore it should be given priority.
A recent study showed that “drinking two to three cups of coffee a day is linked to a longer life” as published by Sky News on its Tweeter handle @SkyNews ,11 hours ago.
“When I tell you to drink ‘Jada’ Coffee, you think I’m just looking for money. No, it’s because I want you to live longer”. Jacklene Arinda emphasized the Tweet on her handle, @jackiearinda .