Business

Italy Funding Africa’s coffee industry with €15 million

The UNIDO Director -General, Gerd Müller, emphasized the urgency and significance of the partnership, stating: “Around 125 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihoods. ‎‎

Published

1 year ago

April 3, 2025

OCHEFA

472 Views

Image credit: The Expressowork

The government of Italy is making €15 million available to the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) for the promotion of sustainable coffee production in Africa.‎‎

The funding arrangement was signed recently by Debora Lepre, the Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Italy to the International Organizations in Vienna, and the UNIDO Director- General, Gerd Muller.‎

‎Ambassador Lepre expressed Italy’s commitment to supporting sustainable agriculture and economic resilience, stating: “The signing of this funding arrangement marks an important milestone in our long-standing collaboration with UNIDO and aims to trigger a chain reaction to attract other partners and investments, promoting a new paradigm of development cooperation as a partnership between equals.” ‎‎

The UNIDO Director -General, Gerd Müller, emphasized the urgency and significance of the partnership, stating: “Around 125 million people worldwide depend on coffee for their livelihoods. ‎‎

This programme will help to improve the lives of the people at beginning of the coffee supply chain. Better jobs and better incomes for families and communities. I am very grateful to the Government of Italy and to all of our other partners in this initiative. ‎Transforming Africa’s Coffee Sector: UNIDO and Italy Drive Climate-Resilient Solutions.”‎‎

Coffee remains one of the world’s most important cash crops deeply embedded in our cultures and economies, sustaining over 12.5 million farms globally. ‎‎

In Africa, coffee accounts for approximately 12% of the global production.‎

Coffee plays a fundamental role, representing a source of foreign currency, tax income generation, and jobs in both producing and consuming countries.‎‎

Despite the increasing global demand for coffee, the sector faces mounting challenges, including climate change, fluctuating global prices, and regulatory pressures, all of which threaten the livelihoods of millions of smallholder farmers.

Related Topics:Africa coffee Coffee Featured

Up Next

CBN denies introducing N5000, N10,000 notes

Don't Miss

Nigeria and UNIDO Earmark $174.6 million for Industrial Projects

Click to comment

Business

Tony Elumelu’s United Capital Secures approval to operate in Ethiopia

Elumeu lauded the transformational Prime Minister of Ethiopia, His Excellency @AbiyAhmedAli , for promoting economic reforms and regional cooperation, the Director General of Ethiopian Capital Market Authority @CMAEthiopia , Ms. Hana Tehelku, and the team at @UnitedCap on this landmark achievement.

Published

5 hours ago

June 9, 2026

OCHEFA

5 Views

United Capital Group has again secured regulatory approvals to commence operations in Ethiopia.

Its Chairman, Tony Elumelu, broke the news on Tuesday, via his official X.

” This development is particularly noteworthy because Ethiopia only recently opened its financial sector to foreign participation, making United Capital’s entry a historic step for both the company and the ongoing integration of African capital markets,” said Elumelu.

Last month, United Capital commenced operations in Rwanda, marking its formal entry into East Africa and reinforcing its ambition to build a leading continental financial services institution.

The Group’s newly established entities include United Capital Trustees Rwanda Limited, licensed to provide trusteeship services, and United Capital Financial Services Rwanda Limited, licensed to offer investment management services, including portfolio management, investment advisory, capital mobilisation, capital market advisory, and fund management solutions.

With this development, United Capital now operates in 11 countries, including Nigeria, with a strong presence in key African markets, a recent expansion into the eight countries within the West African Economic and Monetary Union (WAEMU) region, alongside a growing footprint in East Africa.

According to Elumelu, African institutions are increasingly leading, competing, and succeeding across the continent.

For decades, Africa witnessed foreign capital flowing in while profits largely flowed out.

That narrative is beginning to change.

This is Africapitalism in action — a vision that recognizes the importance of both indigenous and international capital working together to finance Africa’s development and unlock shared prosperity.

Business

Lagos developing world – class new business district —Sanwo-Olu

Sanwo-Olu said Lagos was deliberately building a globally competitive economy driven by innovation, infrastructure and private-sector participation.

Published

8 hours ago

June 9, 2026

OCHEFA

15 Views

• Invest Lagos Summit 3.0: Secretary to the Lagos State Government, ‘Bimbola Salu-Hundeyin (right); Member, House of Representatives, Kafilat Ogbara; Commissioner for Innovation, Science and Technology, Tunbosun Alake; Chairman, Commonwealth Enterprise & Investment Council (CWEIC), Lord Jonathan Marland; Vice President Kashim Shettima; Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu; his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade & Investment, Mrs Folashade Bada Ambrose-Medebem; Deputy Chief of Staff to the Governor, Sam Egube, Dr Toyosi Akerele-Ogunsiji and members of the State Executives Council at the opening of Invest Lagos 3.0, themed: “Lagos – The Business Gateway to Africa”, in Lagos, yesterday.

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has disclosed that as part of efforts to deepen access to global capital, his administration is developing the Lagos International Financial Centre (LIFC), envisioned as a world-class financial district that would strengthen the state’s position as a gateway for investment into Africa.

Speaking yesterday at the third edition of the Invest Lagos Summit, attended by Vice President Kashim Shettima, other governors, foreign investors, development finance institutions and business leaders, Sanwo-Olu said Lagos was deliberately building a globally competitive economy driven by innovation, infrastructure and private-sector participation.

Sanwo-Olu said that the state had recorded significant economic progress in recent years through targeted reforms across transportation, digital infrastructure and industrial development.

Highlighting key infrastructure achievements, Sanwo-Olu cited investments in road networks, waterways and rail transportation, describing them as critical enablers of economic growth and investor confidence.

The governor noted that Lagos was increasingly serving as a gateway to African markets and global capital, positioning itself at the centre of continental trade under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA).

According to him, Lagos remains one of the continent’s most strategic economic hubs, with a population exceeding 25 million and a gross domestic product steadily approaching the $300 billion mark.