Sembabule farmers, traders face losses as middleman vanishes with 29.5 tonnes of coffee

SEMBABULE, January 15, 2025 – Police in Sembabule district have launched an investigation into the alleged theft of 29.5 tonnes of coffee worth Shs 413 million by a middleman in Mateete Industrial Area, leaving both the farmers, and traders in fear of suffering losses.

According to Twaha Kasirye, the Masaka Regional Police Spokesperson, a number of coffee thefts have been reported across Sembabule district since last year, with suspicions falling on middlemen who collect coffee from farmers and traders’ stores, only to disappear without paying for the goods.

Kasirye revealed that one such middleman, Geoffrey Bbaale, collected 29.5 tonnes of coffee from various stores in Mateete Industrial Area on December 27, 2024, promising to pay but has since vanished.

To date, more than 20 cases of coffee theft in the district have been documented. “More than 20 cases of coffee theft by middlemen in Sembabule have been reported, and it is our responsibility to investigate and track down these middlemen who abscond without paying farmers and traders for their coffee,” Kasirye said in a recent media briefing.

Fred Kyakonyi, one of the affected traders, explained that on December 27, 2024, he handed over his coffee worth Shs 158 million to Bbaale, who promised to return with payment within two days. However, Bbaale has not been heard from since. “I trusted this man and gave him my coffee, but since then, he has vanished, and I have not been able to trace him, even though I thought I could find him at his home,” Kyakonyi said.

Other traders who have been affected include Richard Nakana, who is seeking Shs 47.4 million from Bbaale, Kasim Ntanda [Shs 78 million], Tadeo Kisekka [Shs 54 million], and Ivan Kasozi [Shs 15 million], among others.

Kisekka explained the difficulty he now faces in repaying a loan he took to purchase coffee from farmers and sell it to exporters. “I have been using bank loans to buy coffee from farmers, but now I am stuck because Bbaale, who took my coffee, is nowhere to be found,” he said.

Hajji Kamada Musiini, the chairperson of the Sembabule Coffee Traders Association, revealed that they had been selling more than 30 tonnes of coffee to Geoffrey Bbaale monthly. However, this time, he disappeared with the coffee he had collected from over 20 dealers.

Musiini added that the financial capital for coffee traders had increased due to a recent boom in the coffee industry in the district, but this growth has been severely hindered by dishonest middlemen.

To combat coffee theft, Lawrence Majwala, the Head of the Coffee Department at Masaka Cooperative Union, advised traders to refrain from selling to middlemen, as many cannot be trusted. “I urge coffee traders to join the Masaka Cooperative Union and begin selling their coffee directly to the union,” he said.

He went on to highlight the establishment of a Shs 4 billion factory in Kyabakuza, which processes 500 tonnes of coffee daily and serves as an export hub. “We have revitalised over 104 cooperative societies in the Greater Masaka region,” Majwala said.

Furthermore, Majwala explained that the union has provided both farmers and traders with education in the coffee value chain, equipping them with managerial skills to strengthen their bargaining power.

Majwala revealed that the Greater Masaka region produces 2 million bags of Robusta coffee annually, with plans to increase this figure to at least 3mln bags.

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