As Uganda joined the rest of the world to commemorate the international coffee day on 1st October last Saturday, officials say the consumption of coffee locally has risen.

Executive Director of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA, Henry Ngabirano.

The Executive Director of the Uganda Coffee Development Authority (UCDA, Henry Ngabirano commends the private sector for promoting domestic consumption of Uganda soluble coffee, roasted beans and ground coffee.

Ngabirano told the media last week that on top of making coffee available at all most every shopping mall and supermarkets, the number of cafes has grown from 46 in the financial year 2013/14 to 94 in 2015/16. He adds that these cafes have created over 586 barista job opportunities for the youth.

He also revealed that the number of bags of coffee consumed locally has risen up to 236,400 in 2015/2016 from 229,200 in financial year 2014/15.

Ngabirano pledged UCDA’s commitment to provide an enabling environment for the coffee producers.