Cameroon secures US$2.2M investment from Japan to boost cocoa and coffee production 

CAMEROON – Cameroon has secured an investment commitment of US$2.2 million from Japan to boost its coffee and cocoa sectors. 

This comes as part of Cameroon’s plan increase its national cocoa and coffee production by 2030, with targets set at 640,000 tonnes and 160,000 tonnes respectively. 

The investment is part of the “Project to promote sustainable commercial skills for Cameroonian products and international commercial partnerships through the strengthening of advanced technologies,” initiated by the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO). 

A memorandum of understanding was recently signed in Yaoundé by Raymond Tavares, UNIDO’s resident representative, and Ikeda Kiyohiko, charge d’affaires of the Japanese embassy in Cameroon. 

The three-year project aims to support the coffee and cocoa value chains by implementing advanced technologies and enhancing the capacities of farmers to improve productivity, competitiveness, and product quality.  

Raymond Tavares highlighted that the initiative will provide technical training to producers and processors, support cooperatives in post-harvest processing practices, and facilitate access to markets for cocoa and coffee. 

The ultimate goal is to strengthen the competitiveness of Cameroonian cocoa and coffee on the global market.  

This funding from Japan comes at a crucial time as Cameroon intensifies efforts to revitalize these sectors, including the launch of the Cocoa and Coffee Sector Development Fund (Fodecc) in 2021, with a 5-year plan to inject 50 billion FCFA into the industries. 

The investment comes when cocoa prices in Cameroon have hit an all time high, cocoa  selling at CFA4,225 (US$7.04) per kilogram during a collective cocoa sale in the key cocoa-producing area of Abong-Mbang, Eastern Cameroon. 

This record-breaking rate is now recognized as the highest both nationally and globally.  

Cameroon’s Minister of Trade, Luc Magloire Mbarga Atangana, officially acknowledged this milestone, attributing the success to favorable international market dynamics and the consistent enhancement of the nation’s cocoa bean quality.   

“Indeed, the continued improvement in beans quality, coupled with the current favorable conditions of Cameroon’s cocoa sector, which has seen producer prices rising for months, is a result of the international market’s situation,” Minister Atangana stated. 

Global cocoa production for 2023-2024 is forecasted to decrease by 11 percent, leading to a market deficit of 374,000 tons by September 2024, according to the International Cocoa Organization (ICCO).   

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