Uganda’s coffee exports rose at the slowest pace in nine months in August, while falling global prices—especially for robusta beans—led to the first drop in earnings since March 2024.
Exporters shipped 855,441 60-kilogram bags last month, up 2.4 per cent year-on-year, according to the agriculture ministry. However, revenue fell 8.5 per cent to $202.7mn, as average prices dropped to $3.95 per kilogram—down from $4.41 a year earlier and $4.19 in July.
Robusta exports totalled 797,363 bags valued at $180.8mn, a jump of 1.8 per cent in quantity, but a decline of 12.8 per cent in value compared to a year ago. Meanwhile, exports of Arabica beans rose by 11.9 per cent in quantity and 63.9 per cent in value.
“Coffee export volume was slightly higher than the previous year on account of a good crop harvest in coffee growing regions,” said the Ministry of Agriculture “Export value of coffee was however lower than the same month last year and was seen in robusta as a result of the spillover effect from July when prices went down.”
