Marrakech, Morocco, 7th May 2026 — The Sierra Leone Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Dr. Henry Musa Kpaka, alongside the Deputy Minister I of Finance, Kadiatu Allie, participated in the Regional Forum on Coffee Value Chain Development in Africa held in Marrakech, Morocco, from 5th–6th May 2026.
The Regional Forum on Coffee Value Chain Development in Africa was a landmark gathering aimed at transforming Africa’s coffee industry from a raw commodity exporter into a competitive value-added sector.
The forum brought together coffee-producing countries across the continent with a shared objective of strengthening coffee value chains through improved quality, processing, traceability, investment, and enhanced access to international markets.
Co-organised by the Islamic Development Bank, the Kingdom of Morocco, the African Coffee Hub, and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the forum convened governments, development finance institutions, private sector actors, and industry experts to advance discussions on building competitive and inclusive coffee value chains across Africa.
During the forum, Dr. Henry Musa Kpaka delivered key interventions highlighting Sierra Leone’s commitment to revitalising the coffee sector through increased production, value addition, market access, and investment in specialty coffee production, particularly Stenophylla coffee.
Stenophylla coffee is globally recognised for its distinctive quality and ability to thrive under warmer climatic conditions, positioning Sierra Leone strategically as climate pressures continue to affect coffee production worldwide.
The Deputy Minister of Finance I, Hon. Kadiatu Allie, stated that the Government of Sierra Leone continues to provide an enabling environment for farmers through improved access to finance and other financial incentives aimed at enhancing the implementation of the Feed Salone Programme.
A major outcome of Sierra Leone’s participation was the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security and African Coffee Hub Invest. The agreement establishes a framework for technical cooperation to strengthen Sierra Leone’s coffee sector across several strategic areas, including post-harvest handling, quality control, traceability, aggregation, logistics, branding, value addition, investment preparation, and market access.
For Sierra Leone, the partnership represents a significant opportunity to expand farmer incomes, create employment, increase export earnings, and attract meaningful investment into the agricultural sector.
Beneficiary countries, including Sierra Leone, Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Guinea, Togo, and Uganda, engaged in structured discussions focused on unlocking the potential of African coffee and supporting smallholder farmers to access international markets through trade integration.
The forum further underscored a broader continental ambition to strengthen Africa’s control over its coffee industry through sustainable agricultural practices and direct linkages with global buyers.
On the sidelines of the forum, the Sierra Leone delegation also engaged the CEO of OCP, Hajar Alafifa, and the Director of Agribusiness at IsDB Africa, Mamadu Bah. Discussions focused on opportunities to support coffee sector optimisation and the implementation of the Feed Salone Strategy, including the submission of a proposed USD 65 million grant request to support agribusiness development in Sierra Leone.
For more information, please contact:
Aminaash Nyande Brima
Information Attaché
Embassy of the Republic of Sierra Leone
