Uganda has become Africa’s leading coffee exporter, with booming volumes and revenues. In May 2025 alone, exports hit a record 793,445 bags, generating $243 million. Over the past year, revenues nearly doubled to $1.97 billion. This success is due to improved farming, favorable weather, government support, and high global prices.
The Unseen Struggle for Smallholder Farmers
Despite this impressive growth, the 1.8 million smallholder farmers who cultivate most of Uganda’s coffee often see little of the profit. Many remain in poverty, struggling with:
- Low Farm-gate Prices: Farmers receive a tiny fraction of the final export price, with middlemen and large exporters capturing most of the profit.
- Lack of Price Transparency: Limited market information leaves farmers vulnerable to exploitation.
- Market Volatility: Global price swings directly impact their livelihoods.
- Climate Change & Disease: These ongoing threats affect yields and income.
- Compliance Burdens: New regulations, like the EU’s anti-deforestation policy, add costs and complexities for smallholders.
Who Benefits Most?
While the export boom benefits Uganda’s economy generally, the primary winners are:
- Large Export Companies: A few major companies control most of the exports, allowing them to capture significant profit margins.
- Global Consumers and Roasters: They benefit from a consistent supply of high-quality Ugandan coffee.
Towards a Fairer Future
For Uganda’s coffee success to benefit its farmers, action is needed:
- Empower Farmers: Strengthen cooperatives for better bargaining power and direct market access.
- Value Addition: Invest in local processing to export higher-value products like roasted coffee.
- Fairer Trade: Promote initiatives that ensure better prices and conditions for farmers.
- Government Support: Continue investing in farmer training, quality inputs, and infrastructure, alongside policies to prevent unfair pricing.
- Technological Solutions: Utilize tools like blockchain for price transparency and direct payments.
Uganda’s coffee industry is thriving, but true success hinges on ensuring that the prosperity reaches the farmers who make it all possible. Without a more equitable distribution of rewards, the “booming exports” will continue to mean “broken rewards” for many.
credit: Ikenna Unachukwu
