Founded in July 2000, the Eastern African Fine Coffees Association (EAFCA) is a regional non profit, non political, member-driven association representing coffee sectors in 10 member countries namely Burundi, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The Secretariat is hosted in Kampala, Uganda.

EAFCA members include both private and public sector coffee stakeholders including producers, exporters, international importers, roasters, policy makers, transporters and trade representatives.

Our Vision: To Be the World’s Leading Origin of Fine Coffees

Our Mission: To promote the production, quality, consumption and trade of African fine coffees.

Our Goal: To increase the volume and value of fine and specialty coffees traded both regionally and internationally, as well as to increase domestic consumption.

Our Core Activities:

A. TRADE & MARKET EXPANSION

• International Promotional Events
  EAFCA facilitates member attendance at premier specialty coffee events held worldwide to promote and prominently feature their finest coffees. Additionally, EAFCA annually hosts the African Fine Coffee Conference & Exhibition.
• Trade Missions
  EAFCA organizes trade missions for its members to selected target markets to enhance market linkages and build business relations.
• Market Linkages & Business Relationships (“African Coffee Connection” events & Coffee Clubs)
  EAFCA hosts and organizes the “African Coffee Connection” networking functions at international coffee events in coffee consuming countries to enhance market linkages through networking and building of trade relations. EAFCA also hosts “Coffee Clubs” in EAFCA member countries to facilitate networking among members.
• Coffee Auctions
• EAFCA is currently in the process of researching on feasibility of hosting regional coffee auctions.

B. PRODUCT & QUALITY ENHANCEMENT

• National Coffee Cupping Competitions
  EAFCA organizes and conducts annual national coffee cupping competitions (regional Taste of Harvest events) to promote awareness of fine coffee within member countries and enhance coffee quality.
• African Taste of Harvest Competition
  The national coffee cupping competitions held in each member country, culminate in the African Taste of Harvest competition held at the annual African Fine Coffee Conference & Exhibition, where the winning coffees from each country are submitted for judging.
• Capacity Building / Trainings
  Training workshops are held regularly on country and regional basis in marketing, quality enhancement, grading, cupping, brewing etc.
• National Barista Championships
  EAFCA disseminates positive information about coffee consumption in Africa and sponsors National Barista Championships to promote proper coffee brewing, its appreciation and domestic consumption.

Highlights of Accomplishments

Membership:

To date (November 2009), EAFCA has a membership of 156 composed of both individual and corporate members comprising of farmers, exporters, importers, retailers, roasters and coffee professionals from Africa, the Americas, Europe and Asia all over the including members belonging to the specialty coffee associations of Europe, Brazil and America.

Membership Benefits:

• New Member Welcome Kit
• Bwana Kahawa Buzz
• Email Account
• Bi-monthly Fine Coffee Bulletin
• Members-only Webpage Resource Centre
• Substantial Discounts on Training and Event Fees
• International conferences coordination and representation

As a group, Eastern African countries produce about 10% of the specialty coffees of the world and have a potential to produce more.

The volume and quality of the coffee are the main reasons that will attract serious buyers of specialty coffee to come to Eastern Africa. Therefore, market linkages are the main benefits offered to both buyers and sellers of specialty coffee. Using the synergy of ten countries, EAFCA has been able to develop the awareness of producing high quality coffee for the growing market for fine coffees. Jointly, with participation of several organisations, EAFCA has promoted members’ coffees in major exhibitions and events such as the Specialty Coffee Association of America (SCAA) Conference & Exhibition in Boston in 2003 and in Atlanta in 2004, and the World Tea and Coffee Cup in Rome in 2003.

EAFCA also hosted the first ever African Fine Coffees Conference & Exhibition in February 2004 in Nairobi, Kenya. This event not only promoted the high quality coffees from Eastern and Southern Africa but also opened doors for our member exporters to negotiate and enter into contracts with roasters, buyers and retailers specializing in specialty coffees. The exhibition has become the first step towards financial sustainability of EAFCA, a key factor in creating a strong and effective association.

In February 2010 EAFCA will continue with its successful Fine Coffee Conference & Exhibition in Mombasa, Kenya by holding the 7th African Fine Coffee Conference & Exhibition.

EAFCA Services:

Apart from market linkages, EAFCA works with members and non-members in the areas of information generation and dissemination, technology transfer facilitation, alternative coffee marketing such as bulking for big orders and promotion schemes, quality enhancement and assurance, promotion of domestic consumption and favourable regional policy advocacy.

Why Join EAFCA?

As a regional team, EAFCA is in a strategic position to influence favourable policies that could address cross cutting regional issues that are impediments to the growth of the industry. This is imperative for the survival of the Eastern African coffee industry; where quality, relationship, uniformity and joint efforts are the answer to the coffee of tomorrow. Together we can win in the marketplace but separately we lose, since no single country on its own will have enough clout in the market place.

Fees Structure:

Corporate entities, which include companies or other organizations, pay an annual membership fee of USD 300.

Benefits: