EAFCA goes continental, renamed AFCA

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia – Eastern Africa Fine Coffees Association (EAFCA) became African Fine Coffees Association (AFCA) on Friday, thereby embracing the continent to promote African coffee to the world.

EAFCA was established in July 2000 with a couple of East African coffee producing countries before it become an eleven-nation organization.

“It was just an idea ten years ago raised over, say, a dinner, but now we are proud to say that it has become an association embracing eleven African countries,” EAFCA chairman Harrison B. Kalua told The Reporter. “There is some request to join EAFCA from West Africa. EAFCA has just evolved to be an eleven-country organization, and has now become an African association, by a rising demand from other African nations to join the club.”

According to the chairman, more and more African nations have an interest to join EAFCA.

“It is not because we persuade or lobby with the rest [coffee growing] African countries but it is the sheer interest of other African countries to join EAFCA,” Kalua said. “Looking at our activities and achievements through the years, more and more African countries are requesting us to be members. And that is why we have now changed our name from EAFCA to AFCA as EAFCA stands for East African countries as the name suggests.”

Cameroon, Ghana and Ivory Cost have to put forward their request for membership, among others, according to the chairman. “But we are going to have a number of other African nations a including Angola and Mozambique. It was, in fact, the EAFCA name that has been restricting them from joining the organization,” he said. “I think in the coming three, four years we will have many of African countries joining us.”

Source: Ethiopian Reporter