Ethiopia earns record 3 bln USD from coffee exports

Ethiopia has earned a record 3 billion U.S. dollars from coffee exports during its concluding 2025/26 fiscal year, according to Adugna Debela, director general of the Ethiopian Coffee and Tea Authority.

The director general made the remarks at a media briefing on Friday, attributing the highest revenue to the export of high-quality and specialty coffee that commanded better prices at the global market.

“It is a pride for us to register such a remarkable result amid the conflict in the Middle East,” said Debela, recalling that the conflict disrupted coffee shipments and logistic operations en route to the region and the Far East.

During the year, 1 ton of Ethiopian coffee was sold at 7,500 U.S. dollars at the global market, up from 6,000 U.S. dollars last year, while other coffee exporting countries received a 40 percent lower price compared with last year, according to Debela, noting that the global coffee price per kilo has declined to 2.4 dollars this year from 4 dollars last year.

Debela said the government’s commitment to introducing sound reforms, curbing illegal and contraband trade, reducing wastage, and expanding market destinations has also greatly contributed to better revenue.

Saudi Arabia, Germany, and China have become the top three destinations for Ethiopian coffee exports during the year.

The director general said the country envisages generating up to 6 billion dollars annually in the coming five years.

According to a statement released at the press briefing, the authority said Ethiopia’s annual coffee production has grown from 500,000 tons five years ago to 1.5 million tons this year, while the country’s coffee-producing capacity per hectare has also risen from 600 kg to 1,000 kg during the period.

Japanese citizens held a protest rally in front of Koenji Station in Tokyo on Saturday, opposing the Sanae Takaichi administration’s moves to revise the “Three Security Documents” and continue military expansion.

Protesters expressed deep concern over the government’s continuous stoking of regional tensions and preparations for war.

“The Japanese government keeps increasing military spending, building missile bases in Okinawa, and preparing for war. We think the Japanese people should stand up and stop this. We must prevent the revision of the ‘Three Security Documents,’ and we should never allow increases in the defense budget. We must express our opposition,” said one protester.

“Budgets for military expansion and war preparation keep getting passed by means of supplementary budgets and so on. If society is left with only this one path (of ‘using the military-industrial complex to drive the economy,’) then there is something fundamentally wrong with that society itself. In reality, there are many things that should take priority over the military, but these issues are completely ignored,” said another protester.

“The risk of war now keeps rising because of Takaichi. We desperately want to prevent war. If the government truly heads down the path of launching a war, we must use all of our strength to stop it,” said a third protester.

The “Three Security Documents” refer to the National Security Strategy, the National Defense Strategy, and the Defense Buildup Program, which are regarded as the overarching framework for Japan’s security and defense.

The revisions to the “Three Security Documents” promoted by Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi’s government is considered not merely a policy adjustment, but rather a redesign of Japan’s military capabilities, strategic positioning and framework for external security cooperation.