By Marvin Ocol

Jackie Arinda alias Madam CEO has been named on the Committee expected to meet President Yoweri Museveni on matters of coffee. Sources say the Committee is coordinated by Robert Kabushenya (Rugeyo). Others on the Committee are John Nuwagaba (General Manager, Ankole Coffee), Dr. Tonny Mugoya, Mike Asiki, Nelson Tugume (Inspire Africa), Dr. Ian Clarke (large scale coffee farmer) and Silvia Chebet (Masha Coffee) among others.

Our sources say that the Committee was formed at a recent meeting of the coffee stakeholders held at the Skyz Hotel in Naguru and that the meeting followed an earlier meeting with the President in which Kabushenga and a few others were part of. In that meeting, Kabushenga was tasked to form a committee to meet the President in the very near future to discuss among others how a small holder farmer can earn more money and forge a way forward to tapping into the US$ 25 billion shared globally among the coffee producing countries.

It should be noted that Uganda’s is among the top growing/exporting countries. In the last Financial Year alone, Uganda exported about 6 million bags worth US$ 860 million.