In their long-standing partnership to advance sustainable economic and industrial development, Italy and UNIDO (United Nations Industrial Development Organization) have entered a new phase of their collaboration to promote a more sustainable and resilient coffee supply chain in Africa: UNIDO’s “Advancing Climate-Resilience and Transformation in African Coffee” (ACT) programme is in line with the focus on food security, renewable energy and job creation of Italy’s Mattei Plan for Africa.
At the signing ceremony held on 25 March at UNIDO Headquarters in Vienna, Ambassador Debora Lepre, Permanent Representative of Italy to the International Organizations in Vienna, underlined Italy’s commitment to supporting the socio-economic growth of Africa, stating that “this important initiative aims at triggering a chain reaction to attract other partners and investments, promoting a new paradigm of development cooperation as partnerships among equals”, whereas UNIDO Director General Gerd Müller emphasized the significance of the partnership with Italy: “This is the largest project ever financed by Italy” – he stated – “and it is more than a ‘usual’ project. In the Italian private sector there are technologies and expertise that can be transferred to the beneficiary countries through strong public-private partnerships”.
Coffee is crucial to global economies, especially in Africa. The ACT program will support African coffee-producing countries by addressing challenges like climate change, price fluctuations and regulatory pressures that threaten smallholder farmers. The initiative adopts a multi-pillar approach that combines technical assistance, financial support and policy guidance to foster a sustainable and climate-resilient coffee industry.
The ACT program, which aligns with the African Union’s Agenda 2063, will initially focus on East Africa (Ethiopia, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Malawi) but aims to expand across the continent. It involves strong partnerships with the International Coffee Organization and the Inter African Coffee Organization, as well as the already mentioned strategic collaborations with the private sector.
