Meeting of the African Coffee Research Network

Following the conclusions and recommendations of the seminar on improving the productivity and quality of African coffee organized by CTA from 22-26 June 1992 at Lisbon, Portugal, the African Coffee Research Network was established under the aegis of the OIAC, with the aim of coordinating research in Africa. The first meeting of this network was organized in Montpellier, France on 14 and 15 June 1993 in collaboration with CIRAD and OIAC and the financial support of CTA. The objective of the meeting was to examine national programmes on the selection of plant material, their experiences and their difficulties, in order to identify projects which should be supported under the network's programmes. In his introductory remarks Professor R Coste presented an outline of a programme to revitalise the cultivation of African robusta coffee, whilst at the same time suggesting that the network should establish two distinct programmes for arabica and robusta, based on the particular problems of each group. This project should concentrate on the preparation of an inventory of robusta coffee planting material available from research stations, an intergovernmental agreement which would make this material freely available, the establishment of the reactivation of a regional trials network to test and evaluate the adaptation of selected material based on its characteristics and the organization of an educational campaign for producers through conferences, films and pilot plantations. Finally, Professor Coste drew the participants' attention to the competition which African coffee faces, in the light of the development of coffee cultivation in Asian countries. The changes that are needed in the cultivation of arabica coffee are essentially genetic and agronomic: resistance to coffee berry disease, to rust, to drought and selection on the basis of coffee quality. The participants presented reports on their experiences and difficulties in the research work of the respective institutions, the production and distribution of plant material and the possibility for joint research in the context of the network. The participants concluded by listing research topics and identifying 3 priorities, which were the management of genetic resources, the creation of cultivars of arabica resistant to coffee berm, disease and the improvement of low-altitude coffee. To maintain this initiative the African Coffee Research Network plans to organize both a study visit and a meeting on coffee cultivation in December 1993 in Nairobi, Kenya.African Coffee Research Network meeting of this network was organized in Montpellier, France on 14 and 15 June 1993 in collaboration with CIRAD and OIAC and the financial support of CT