5th African Scientific Coffee Conference, Kigali, Rwanda

11 February 2009

The 5th African Scientific Coffee Conference took place in Kigali, Rwanda on 11 February 2009 on the theme of “Linking research results to smallholder livelihoods in Africa”. The conference was sponsored by the Common Fund for Commodities (CFC) and brought together scientists and researchers to discuss the results of CFC/ICO coffee development projects and the contribution of research to improving the livelihoods of coffee farmers in the region. The Chairman of the Coffee Board of India, Mr G.V. Krishna Rau, and the Director of the Central Coffee Research Institute of India also attended the conference. Mr Denis Seudieu, the ICO Chief Economist, presented a paper entitled “Emerging challenges and opportunities in the international coffee markets: securing the future of African coffees”, and the Executive Director made the concluding remarks at the Conference. The results of three CFC/ICO projects were presented by representatives of the respective Project Executing Agencies: “Improvement of coffee production in Africa by the control of coffee wilt disease”; “Improving coffee quality in East and Central Africa through enhanced processing practices” and “Integrated white stem borer management in smallholder coffee farms in India, Malawi and Zimbabwe”. In the case of the last project, the Executive Director distributed the final report to participating countries.