By E K Bensah Jr.
Established in 1960 in Abidjan, the Inter-African Coffee Organisation (IACO) unites 25 African coffee-producing countries.
It became a specialized agency of the African Union only in December 2024. Earlier in February 2024 during its 37th Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, coffee was recognized as a strategic global commodity for sustainable economic development.
IACO helps African countries grow, process, and sell coffee.
The February 2026 Decisions of the Executive Council dedicated a full page to IACO.
It took note of “IACO’s flagship initiatives, including the establishment of the African Centre for Coffee Research and the Coffee Training Centre of Excellence”, which is “aimed at strengthening research, value addition, climate resilience, and youth and women participation in the coffee value chain”.
The Commission acknowledges IACO’s collaboration with international partners under continental and global frameworks “to support climate resilience, compliance with international market requirements, and sustainable transformation of the African coffee sector.”
The document endorses “the request for the Commission to support IACO’s efforts to mobilize African coffee-consuming countries to join the Organization, with a view to strengthening continental coordination, enhancing the capacity of Member States, and advancing the effective implementation of the AfCFTA agenda in the coffee sector.”
It encourages IACO “to continue reporting on progress and emerging initiatives”, including those related to:
• Strengthening regional value chains and capacity-building for coffee producers;
• Promoting social inclusion, gender equality, and youth empowerment within the coffee sector;
• Enhancing African coffee branding and inter regional trade;
• Strengthening partnerships with the private sector, regional institutions, and international stakeholders for the sustainable development of the coffee industry.
As awareness grows on AfCFTA, and its critical role in regional value chains and intra-African trade, we look forward to how AfCFTA engages IACO as a newly-established specialized agency of the AU so as to capitalize on capacity-building for farmers in the cocoa sector.
The Executive Council’s renewed attention suggests that the African Union increasingly sees coffee not merely as an agricultural commodity, but as a strategic value chain capable of supporting industrialization, intra-African trade and rural employment under AfCFTA.
For those interested in IACO’s work, check out its Instagram page that is updated regularly: https://www.instagram.com/interafricancoffeeorg?igsh=cmR1djNwdTFkOHkz
