Ethiopia banks on coffee harvest growth

24 December, 2007

ADDIS ABABA (AFP) - The Ethiopian government said Monday it was banking on an eight percent growth in coffee harvests for the coming season.

The agriculture ministry said in a statement it hoped to harvest 360,000 tonnes during the coming season, 220,000 of which are destined for export.

The statement said that 320,000 tonnes were reaped during the 2007 fiscal year, 176,000 of which were exported all over the world.

Coffee accounts for 60 percent of the Horn of Africa nation's export revenues and is the largest source of foreign currencies, ahead of flowers and oil seeds.

Ethiopia is Africa's top coffee producer and the world's sixth largest.