By Aaron
Yancho Kaah, Bamenda-cameroon
There is a buzz of excitement in the air for
some 35.000 coffee family farmers’ in the North West Region of Cameroon who now
constitute an extended network of Hope and Self-reliance under the North West Cooperative Association (NWCA).
NWCA’s crusade to build the capacity of
these coffee farmers as well as improve their living conditions through incentives
with basic farm inputs and better financial remuneration, officials of the
group maintains will provide a new safety nets to lift the production capacity
of this Association from almost zero tons of coffee in 2013 to 850 ton’s in
2016. “2017 promises to be another year
of progress and success” Recounted Fonguh Peter marketing manager of this
cooperative.
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| NWCA Bamenda office |
The new
general manger of NWCA - Waindim Timothy Ntam, has proven that the simple but powerful
act of collecting, processing and marketing of cocoa and coffee can benefit farmers
and their communities if well articulated.
“Working
to bridge the long standing gaps between our member’s and cooperatives we have
proven that sustainable development is possible” Remark the GM.
Working and doing business with some 12
Secondary Unions and 43, Cooperative Producing and Marketing Societies across
the region, NWCA is braving the storms to tactfully manage the obsolete
equipments at its disposal to meet its needs and demands.
“We are determine to keep moving step by step in building the
formidable value chain of taking coffee
from the farm to the cup despite all the odds” said Timothy. And true to this
endeavor, at least 96 packets of coffee are processed a week form organic green
Arabica coffee beans farmed across the Region.
NWCA was built with the sweat and pennies of
farmer’s in the 1950, as the only leading farmer organization in the NW Region
of Cameroon. This association is accredited for having helped its member’s
source income for their personal emergency needs and development. “This was the hope of farmers”. said the-
GM.
Waindim Timothy who had work for this
association in various portfolios in the last 16years also recalled that it was
thanks to this association that the first sheets of corrugated zinc were nailed
in houses across the Region.
“Things were
shaping up well but the liberation of the coffee sector in the early 1990’s
changed the farmer’s involvement with the Association” The GM lamented. The
resulting consequence led to a decline in coffee production. The lack of land,
limited resources and the sensitive nature of the Arabica coffee to the climate
changes made a bad situation worse.
Hardship rocked the Association to
financial debts. “Not wanting to give off, desperate times called for desperate
measures” He added. So without hesitation the cooperative went into some
structural internal reforms and the global marketing of some of its finished
products.
KOLA –COFFEE
With enough action, this Association began processing
and distributing the beans of the green Arabica coffee into powder-rich in
flavor and aroma. Processed with care
and craft, every crisp and a mouthful of this coffee celebrate not only one of
Africa’s mountainous coffee beans but kola tree shade- grown coffee in NW Cameroon.
‘To identify with our region and our
coffee farming system we opted to name this final product as KOLA coffee”
remarked the GM. According to Achu Frederick, the coffee roaster of this
cooperative -The adage that he who brings kola, brings life has summoned up the
taste and sunshine in kola coffee.
The credibility in handling this venture successfully
saw NWCA breaking into the US market in 2008 under the kola coffee company LLC.
“Our principal objectives were to invade the US markets with this kola coffee
and to enhance our cooperative visibility”. The GM added. To say the least this
dream was nibbled in the bud due to limited financial means.
In keeping the
steam afloat, recent quality controls of the coffee bean’s and modernize
processing techniques which involve the processing and packaging of this
Africa’s indigenous tea has continuously kept Kola –Coffee a trump card for resurrecting cooperative. “For the moment NWCA has plans to take this
product to the wide world and they are visible plans to improve the production
and marketing capacities” added The GM.
NWCA
AND LAND
Some NWCA projects are
specifically designed to help NW farmers adapt to the climate changes. “Seasonal uncertainties had long obstructed
the coffee growing season the high prevalence of pest and diseases also became
a big worry for us “the GM said.
These climatic changes, brought in by high
temperatures also distorted the metabolic process in coffee beans bearing. Form
statistics 1*c rise in temperature led to approximately 137kg lost in production
for one hectare of coffee farm land. . All these evidence gave rise to the
Agro-forestry strategist which NWCA now propagates across the region.
“High canopy kola nuts trees are cultivated
side by side with the coffee plants to help reduce the high day time temperatures”
the GM said. This shade grown coffee projects also benefitted ecosystems and biodiversity
as these shade trees save as habitat for birds and wildlife. Through this shade
grown coffee, farmers benefit high food crop yields in areas like Oku, Belo and
Donga Mantung as the leaves of these kola nut trees are rich food crop and
plant fertilizer.
“This Kola trees also provide kola nuts for food and extra
additional income for these farmers” remarked Mbah Linus a farmer in Boya
division and an active cooperatives member.
This method portrays a site specific
adaptation strategy to help mitigate the effects of climate change on the
coffee sector in this region of Cameroon. No doubt this has curved a unique niche
for NW coffee.
According to North West Cooperative Association management
grevilea is another tree species which is highly encouraged to be cultivated.
All these integrated tree planting projects will boast land security and care
for the earth in this region
This cooperative dreams for a better future
on the coffee business sector is very interesting according to its Waindim Timothy
Ntam. He proudly opines that the future will be very engaging at the national
and international levels.
“Owing to the
fact that most NWCA farmers fall between the 58-60 age brackets across the
Region, more dynamic ways are being introduce to get youth into the sector and
to boast production” he recounted. .
This is a magic wand the cooperative
is counting on to sustain its business around its cherished farmers across the
seven divisions of the region. Though private buyers and middle men have not
helped matters for the farmers and for the cooperative in the past years, NWCA
is more determine to help every farmer to enjoy the sweat of his labor through
good pay according to the General Manager.
“While our dreams are wide we are
more self-confident to build a stronger vibrant Association of NW coffee
farmers and to continue to thrive in cooperative and in synergy with the
Cameroon government” He added.
There is already good news in the making.
NWCA has signed (MoU) Memoranda of understanding with the Italian Farmers Union
to assist it articulate projects that will better and lift the aspirations of
the association in the near future.
“At
the heart of this partnership will be the creation of Micro-Financial Institution
that will serve as a bank for our farmers”. The GM said with a smile.
The North West Cooperative Association is
looking to the world with open arms to solicit for partnerships and grants that
could help steam up good life around the coffee farming sector in this part of
Cameroon. Mr. Waindim Timothy Ntam and his team of collaborators are also in a
notable struggle to get the NW green Arabica coffee beans certified at the
world market as part of its Foot steps Towards Progress.
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