KATHMANDU: A one-day coffee symposium was organised in Lalitpur on Thursday to promote Nepali specialty coffee in the domestic and international market.

The symposium was organised by ICCO Cooperation at Himalaya Hotel yesterday to bring together diverse stakeholders to debate and discuss the way forward for a sustainable and prosperous future for Nepali Specialty Coffee, according to the organisers.

The symposium — with over 120 participants from small-holder coffee farmers, processors, traders, entrepreneurs, representatives from government agencies, financial institutions, policy makers, impact investors, and development practitioners — provided a common platform to discuss together ways to boost revenue and improve livelihoods of coffee farmers in Nepal.

Nepali Specialty Coffee, which has a unique image globally, provides income source for over 30,000 farmers in central and western Nepal, according to the organisers. Meantime, relevant stakeholders are moving ahead to improve production and quality.

The symposium held the discussion on 'Strengthening the Coffee Value Chain: from Farm to Cup' and 'Enabling Coffee Sector Development: Policy and Investment'.

In the programme, Nima Sherpa, founder of Lekali Coffee said that Nepali coffee is expensive to produce because of the terrain, therefore, producers should give importance to the quality of the produce, in order to promote coffee in global market.

Sheshkanta Gautam, Executive Director of Nepal Tea and Coffee Development Board (NTCDB) said in the programme, with the establishment of new government structures in the country, local levels should be brought onboard to further promote coffee and lobby at grassroot level.

He further said that NTCDB can advise on suitable locations for coffee production based on GIS mapping.

Similarly, Andreas Roettger, Head of Cooperation at Delegation of the European Union (EU) to Nepal informed that EU had embarked on a coffee journey to promote inclusive economic growth citing promising potential of the coffee sector in Nepal.

Various coffee products and services were exhibited in the event.

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