KAMPALA, October 31, 2025 — The Deputy Speaker of Parliament, Thomas Tayebwa, has called upon Finnish firms to invest in Uganda’s coffee industry, particularly in value addition, saying this would enable Uganda and other African producers to gain a greater share of the lucrative global coffee market.
During a meeting with Members of the Commerce Committee of the Parliament of Finland, Mr Tayebwa highlighted the stark imbalance in global coffee earnings, noting that African coffee-producing nations receive only a small fraction of the wealth generated by the international trade in the commodity.
“I want to encourage companies from Finland to come and add value to Ugandan coffee, Africa’s largest coffee exporter,” Tayebwa said.
Citing recent global trade statistics, he revealed that the coffee industry generates approximately US$ 452 billion annually, yet only US$ 25 billion goes to producing countries. Of that, Africa collectively earns a mere US$ 3 billion.
“It means that all the coffee produced here, in Brazil, Vietnam and elsewhere, brings only US$25 billion to the producers, while countries that do not grow even a single coffee tree take the lion’s share,” Tayebwa remarked, describing the situation as “a clear case of economic injustice.”
Tayebwa said he is leveraging his continental leadership roles, as President of the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States [OACPS] Parliamentary Assembly and Co-President of the OACPS–European Union Joint Parliamentary Assembly, to advocate for fairer trade terms, including the reduction of taxes on coffee exports to the European Union.
“I challenged European leaders during our last meeting. I asked them why they impose heavy levies on coffee from Uganda, where it is actually produced, yet waive taxes on coffee processed and sold in Europe,” he said.
Tayebwa also shared his astonishment from a recent visit to Milan, Italy, where he found a kilogramme of Ugandan coffee retailing for €45, compared to its local price of roughly €3.
On their part, the visiting Finnish legislators commended Uganda for its refugee-friendly policies and culture of hospitality, describing the country as a global model in humanitarian response.
“We are very impressed with the work you do on refugees. You offset a huge burden,” said Vilhelm Junnila, Chairperson of Finland’s Committee on Commerce.
“We are equally pleased with the warm relations between our countries. I know we import coffee from Uganda and export paper products in return,” he added.
Junnila led a seven-member delegation that spent a week in Uganda benchmarking parliamentary best practices. The group was accompanied by representatives from Finn Church Aid, a Finnish humanitarian organisation.
https://thecooperator.news/ugandas-coffee-exports-surge-59-percent-in-september-2025/
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