Ethiopia, Top Producer in Africa, Opens New Coffee
Training Center
June 10 - 2021
Coffee Geography Magazine
Ethiopia, the top producer of Arabica coffee in Africa and the
second top exporter from the continent announced the opening of coffee training center
to deliver modular and practice-based training that aims to enhance the
sustainability and value chain of the country's coffee sector.
The center is Located in the capital, Addis Ababa where the
Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority (ECTA) is located and it comprises of the
main coffee laboratories, including green coffee evaluation, sensorial lab,
industrial processing lab and brewing lab, cafes, classrooms as well as rooms
for coffee shop, conference and other services.
The center is built in partnership with ECTA, United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO), the Italian DevelopmentCooperation Agency, and illycaffe to boost the capcity of the private coffee
sector in the country.
The Italian Development Cooperation Agency has funded more than
1.5 million euros. UNIDO and Illycaffe provided technical support bringing
their own experts for the new facility.
The center plans to provide training programs to hundreds of
coffee processors and exporters engaged coffee bean preparation including
drying and storage; trade and maintenance of equipment.
Coffee in Ethiopia is grown by more than four million
smallholder farmers and makes up five percent of the country's GDP. It also
employs more than 15 million people in coffee production and marketing.
The center will help the coffee growers and exporters to enhance
the quality of the beans to the internationally desired level.
The center provides a comprehensive training program, intensive
coaching and tailor-made technical support to cuppers, baristas, cafe
entrepreneurs, exporters, researchers, and commercial farmers to improve
processing and business management practices that meet international standards.
The Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority is a government agency supervising the overall production and quality of coffee in the country. With the well know regional coffee brands Harar, Yirga Cheffe and Sidamo, Ethiopia is always regarded as one of the most important coffee producing countries in the world.