VILLAGE URUGWIRO - Global leading coffee company Starbucks is to set up a coffee farmers’ support centre in the country next year.

This was announced by visiting Starbucks Chief Executive Officer, Howard Schultz yesterday after meeting President Paul Kagame at Village Urugwiro.

"We have already hired agronomists who will be helping farmers understand how to make coffee and in so doing, increase their yields and profitability,” Schultz told journalists shortly after meeting the President.

In an interview, Kagame said the emergency of this centre is going to facilitate the increment of coffee production and quality in the country which will help farmers sell their product at better prices.

"We are looking at both volume and quality without the two compromising either and the centre will come in hand to solve this problem given the history of coffee production in the country,” President Kagame said.

He said that the partnership that has been forged between Rwanda and Starbucks, an American giant coffee company will make a big difference to a local Rwandan coffee farmer, saying that the government will also continue to support the farmers especially through mobilization and in terms of finance.

"It will help elevate the quality of coffee produced to a much higher level to make it competitive on the global market,” President said, adding that even Starbucks will benefit from this, by buying a quality product.

Schultz said that his company’s purchases from Rwanda have increased by over ten times since they started doing business three years ago.

The centre which is to start by 2008 is only the second of its kind to be established on the African continent following the one that was set up in Ethiopia.

Currently another centre run by the coffee dealer is established in Costa Rica in South America.

"We have been raising awareness of the quality of Rwandan coffee ever since we started doing business here in Rwanda,” Schultz said.

Rwandan coffee has of recent gained prominence on global market after the government sensitized the farmers to embark on the product, contrary to the past where it had been neglected as farmers had to diversify its production with other crops.

Starbucks which is a leading retailer, roaster and brand of specialty coffee in the world, has over 13, 000 coffee shops in the world.

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