Italy-Ethiopia meeting to strengthen the coffee value chain

(ANSA) - NAIROBI, 20 FEB - The Italian ambassador to Ethiopia, Sem Fabrizi, met today with Adugna Debela, director general of the Ethiopian Coffee Authority (ECTA), the government agency responsible for the regulation, protection, and development of coffee, a sector that accounts for 4% of Ethiopia's national GDP and is the country's main export product. During the cordial meeting, Italy's strong and traditional commitment to strengthening the coffee value chain was evoked. The Director General expressed his gratitude for the numerous projects supporting the quality and sustainability of production, skills, and access to credit and investment tools that the Italian government finances through various cooperation instruments. The ambassador, together with Debela, then visited the Coffee Training Center (CTC), which has become the national and regional reference point for skills development, certification along the production value chain, and coffee marketing. During the visit, he met with students and trainers, the latter returning from courses funded by Italian cooperation and held at the Illy training center in Trieste. Finally, the Director General emphasized his strong desire for further strengthening of bilateral cooperation throughout the entire supply chain, particularly with regard to climate resilience, and recalled the important mission to Italy by the Ethiopian Exporters Association, organized with Confindustria-Assafrica, which took place in Milan in recent days. Read article...

By ANSA