The world of coffee in Rome, between resilience and investments – Illy
The search for innovative financial solutions to tackle climate change and help coffee farmers receive a sustainable income. This is the theme of the Colloquium organized on the occasion of the Ernesto Illy International Coffee Award 2022 by illycaffè and the International Coffee Organization (ICO) through the Coffee Public-Private Task Force (Cpptf), with the support of the Department of Major Events, Sport, Tourism and Fashion of Rome Capital.
The coffee sector now has 25 million farmers in over 50 countries located in the tropical belt and its global supply chain supplies a product of which over 3 billion cups are consumed worldwide each day. Hosted by the councilor of the Municipality of Rome Alessandro Onorato, institutions, farmers and representatives of the coffee chain from all over the world attended the meeting and took part in the debate, with the testimony of the deputy director of the Directorate General for Development Cooperation ( DGCS) of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation (MAECI), Roberto Colaminè. The tools to be used to ensure prosperity for farmers, their families and for the entire coffee supply chain were analyzed and discussed by the heads of the International Coffee Organization, with the executive director Vanúsia Nogueira and the chief operating officer Gerardo Patacconi, as well as the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO) with the Chief Economist Maximo Torero Cullen, by experts from the European Commission, the International Fund for Agricultural Development (Ifad), the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (Unido) and by Andrea Illy, president of illycaffè.
Agreeing on the urgency of reducing the risk generated by climate change through the adoption of regenerative agriculture practices and circular economy solutions, new financial mechanisms have been identified to increase investments capable of increasing the resilience and productivity of coffee farming, improving the income of agricultural communities. Calling for greater coordination between all development partners, the ICO and the private sector, an appeal has been launched to the financial community to create a global coffee resilience fund, drawing on all public and private financial instruments. available: a pioneering initiative not only for the coffee sector but for agriculture in general. In this regard, it was announced that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs with Development Cooperation has financed a project with Unido to support and assist Ethiopia in investments in the coffee sector, to strengthen workers’ skills by promoting increased productivity and encouraging synergies between public and private players, under the banner of sustainable business models.
The Colloquium was attended by: Alessandro Onorato, councilor for Major Events, Sport, Tourism and Fashion of Rome Capital; Andrea De Marco, industrial development expert, Unido; Andrea Illy, president of illycaffè and co-president of the Regenerative Society Foundation; Francisco Rubio, senior technical specialist, Ifad; Gerardo Patacconi, chief operating officer, ICO; Máximo Torero Cullen, chief economist, FAO; Nuno Santos, senior economist, Fao Investment Center division; Renate Hahlen, Minister Counselor, Head of the UN Section, EU Delegation to the Holy See, the Order of Malta, UN Organizations in Rome and the Republic of San Marino; Roberto Colaminè, Deputy Director General Directorate for Development Cooperation, (Maeci); Vanusia Nogueira, Executive Director, ICO.
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