National
Research advances on the new Excelsa Coffee
Kawanda, 18 th May, 2026 - Uganda could soon add new value to its coffee sector by developingExcelsa coffee, an underutilised species that researchers say has potential for climate resilience,biodiversity conservation and market diversification.The National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), through the National AgriculturalResearch Laboratories (NaRL) at Kawanda, has been engaging farmers and partners to generateevidence needed to organise the crop’s value chain and position it for future marketdevelopment.“Excelsa coffee presents an important opportunity for Uganda, but we must approach it carefullyand scientifically. Farmers already have valuable knowledge about the crop, while researchersmust generate the evidence needed to support conservation, planting material development,quality profiling and market positioning.” Dr. Yona Baguma, the NARO Director General, saidduring a recent visit to one of the trial fields at Kamenyamiggo in Lwengo district.Dr. Baguma noted that once established, Excelsa coffee would expand Uganda’s coffee basebeyond the dominant Robusta and Arabica species.Dr. Catherine Kawuka leads farmers in analysing data on Excelsa coffee at KawandaOn Thursday, NaRL together with partners held a focused engagement with farmers to furtherexplore the potential of Excelsa coffee as an emerging opportunity for Uganda’s coffee sector.Dr. Catherine Kiwuka, NARO’s lead scientist on the project: “Development of Excelsa Coffeeunder Global Change”, said the organisation is working in partnership with the Royal BotanicGardens, Kew; Makerere University; Kyagalanyi Coffee Limited, and farmers, with financialsupport from the Calleva Foundation,Excelsa coffee, scientifically known as Coffea dewevrei, and known by different local namessuch as “Kisansa” by farmers is one of the coffee species found in Uganda and predominant inZoka Central Forest Reserve in Adjumani district and Semuliki National Park in Bundibugyodistrict.Although it is still largely underdeveloped and highly diverse, researchers believe it presents animportant opportunity for coffee diversification, climate resilience, biodiversity conservation andfuture market development.Farmers assessing Excelsa coffee plants at KawandaDuring the farmer–scientist interface at Kawanda, farmers, researchers, private-sector actors andinstitutional partners discussed how Uganda can develop the Excelsa coffee value chain. Themeeting included a guided visit to an on-station field trial, where farmers observed theperformance of different Excelsa materials and shared feedback based on their own farmingexperience.Farmers provided practical insights on the agronomy of Excelsa coffee, including tree growth,flowering behaviour, fruiting patterns, management practices, field performance, challenges andperceived advantages. They also raised issues related to planting material, market access, buyerinterest, processing and the need for clearer information on the commercial potential of the crop.Researchers noted that one of the current challenges is that Excelsa coffee remains highlyvariable, with many types known by farmers but not yet formally characterised. This makes itdifficult for exporters and other value-chain actors to guarantee consistency in quality, volumesand market positioning.The scientists said the immediate priority is to generate enough evidence to support thedevelopment of a more organised value chain. This includes documenting farmer knowledge,identifying promising genetic material, characterising candidate materials, assessing cup quality,understanding production performance, and working with farmers and private-sector actors todetermine what is needed for market development.The engagement also highlighted the need to select a small number of promising Excelsa typesthat can be further studied, multiplied and evaluated for production and market use. Such workwould help provide farmers with more reliable planting material while giving buyers andexporters greater confidence in quality and consistency.NARO Director General, Dr. Yona Baguma (center) with other scientists inspecting the Excelsa trial field at Kamenyamiggo in LwengoSpeaking during the engagement, Dr. Kiwuka emphasised that the development of Excelsacoffee must be guided by science, farmer experience and market realities. They noted that thecrop cannot be promoted sustainably without evidence on agronomy, adaptation, quality,processing, farmer incentives and buyer requirements.The meeting forms part of a broader effort to position Excelsa coffee within Uganda’s nationalcoffee research and development agenda. The work is expected to contribute to germplasmconservation, scientific characterisation, planting material development, market intelligence,policy engagement and future investment planning.NARO says the feedback from farmers will be used to guide follow-up activities, including fielddocumentation, identification of candidate mother plants, further evaluation of promisingmaterials, and engagement with partners across the coffee value chain.The engagement marks an important step in Uganda’s effort to turn Excelsa coffee from alargely underutilised genetic resource into a better understood, better organised and potentiallyvaluable component of the national coffee industry.“NARL’s role is to support national agricultural development through science, evidence andpartnerships. This engagement is important because it brings farmers, researchers and value-chain actors together to shape a practical agenda for Excelsa coffee.” Dr Robooni Tumuhimbise,Director of Research-NARO-NARL, said.
