By Kadijatu Bangura | Daily Scope Newspaper
The Sierra Leone has signed a memorandum of understanding with African Coffee Hub Invest to strengthen value addition and export capacity, a key outcome of its participation at the Regional Forum on Coffee Value Chain Development in Africa that opened Monday in Marrakech.
The forum, co-organized by the Islamic Development Bank, the Kingdom of Morocco, African Coffee Hub, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, aims to help African producers shift from raw bean exports to competitive value chains built on quality, processing, traceability, and access to global markets. Delegates included governments, development finance institutions, private firms, and technical experts shaping a regional investment programme for the sector.
Representing Sierra Leone, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Dr. Henry Musa Kpaka and Deputy Finance Minister I Kadiatu Allie outlined interventions to lift production, improve value addition, and expand market access. Kpaka highlighted Coffea stenophylla, a species native to Sierra Leone prized for its quality and heat tolerance, calling it a strategic asset as climate pressures mount on global coffee supply.
The MoU with African Coffee Hub Invest sets up technical cooperation covering post-harvest handling, quality control, traceability, aggregation, logistics, branding, investment preparation, and market access. Officials say the framework is designed to move Sierra Leone’s coffee industry beyond low-value commodity trade toward an organized, traceable, investment-ready sector.
Coffee remains a priority crop for raising rural incomes, creating jobs, and boosting export earnings. The partnership, government officials noted, positions Sierra Leone to capture higher value in the supply chain and deliver wider benefits to farmers, agribusinesses, and the national economy.
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