New funding for coffee value chains
Italy’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation hosted a session in Rome to outline plans for cooperation with coffee-producing nations. Vice Minister Edmondo Cirielli opened the meeting. Italy launched the Global Coffee Initiative alongside the World Bank Group and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti. This initiative includes the Espresso Fund, which acts as the first global public-private fund for the coffee value chain and supports more than 12 million farms worldwide, 95 per cent of which are smallholdings. This meeting follows the G7 Development Ministerial in Pescara, where producers and consumers met to discuss a global initiative for coffee. Participants included the Prime Minister of Uganda, Robinah Nabbanja, the Cabinet Secretary for Agriculture and Livestock Development of Kenya, Mutahi Kagwe, and the Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development of Colombia, Indalecio Dangond.
The ACT Coffee Programme (Advancing Climate-Resilience and Transformation in African Coffee) works with Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Tanzania and Uganda to strengthen climate resilience, quality, skills, regulatory compliance and access to finance through the framework of Italy’s Mattei Plan and the EU Global Gateway Strategy. This programme launched in May 2025. Marina Ponti, UNIDO Deputy Director-General, stated that coffee is a strategic priority for Italy, the EU Global Gateway and the producing countries. The sector faces a grim reality: without adaptation, up to half of the land currently suitable for coffee production could be lost by 2050. Coffee producer incomes directly affect food security and rural employment.
Infrastructure and country-specific support
| Program Component | Partner/Entity |
|---|---|
| Espresso Fund | World Bank Group and Cassa Depositi e Prestiti |
| Quality planting material | World Coffee Research and private sector |
| Parametric insurance | Generali and UNDP |
| Investment pipelines | IFC and IFAD |
UNIDO helps partner governments access climate finance, including through the Italian Climate Fund. National governments and the Italian coffee industry are developing five new Coffee Training Centres. Construction of the center in Ruiru, Kenya is complete. In Uganda, UNIDO provides quality planting material with World Coffee Research via private sector co-financing. Generali and UNDP provide parametric insurance for smallholder farmers. The programme is currently active in five countries, but a potential second phase could extend activities to other coffee-producing countries across the continent. Industry leaders Giuseppe Lavazza and Andrea Illy attended the session.
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