Inspire Africa Group has honoured a cross-section of journalists and media personalities for their contribution to telling Uganda’s evolving coffee story, particularly around value addition, industrialisation, and efforts to expand international markets.
The recognition ceremony was held on Saturday, May 2, 2026, at Inspire Café in Kampala, bringing together journalists, policymakers, and private sector stakeholders involved in the coffee value chain.
The initiative is part of a broader effort to strengthen collaboration between the media and the coffee sector as Uganda pursues an ambitious goal of increasing coffee earnings from $2.4 billion to $10 billion by 2030.
Speaking at the event, Nelson Tugume, Chief Executive Officer of Inspire Africa Group, said effective storytelling is central to transforming Uganda’s coffee sector and unlocking global markets.
“We are young as a brand, but we are thinking big. If we are going to build global markets, then we must invest in visibility and storytelling that positions Uganda correctly,” Tugume said.
He stressed that media engagement should be treated as a strategic investment rather than a cost, especially in efforts to build Uganda’s presence in international coffee markets.
Tugume also emphasised the need for Uganda to move beyond exporting raw coffee and instead focus on capturing more value across the entire production and processing chain.
Speaking at the same event, Alan Kasujja, Executive Director of the Uganda Media Centre, highlighted the media’s central role in national development through storytelling.
“We are at an intersection where journalists teach farmers about quality, inform consumers, and guide investors. That is powerful influence,” Kasujja said.
He added that accurate and consistent storytelling is critical in positioning Uganda as a competitive global coffee producer.
The recognition followed months of media tracking after the 2025 Coffee Media Bootcamp held at Africa Coffee Park in Ntungamo, which trained journalists on the coffee value chain from production and processing to export markets.
Inspire Africa Group said the programme will continue as Uganda seeks to position coffee not only as an export commodity but also as a driver of tourism, industrialisation, and innovation.
Uganda Tourism Association President Yogi Biriggwa called for a more lifestyle-oriented approach to coffee storytelling, saying the sector should extend beyond production into consumer culture and related industries.
She noted emerging opportunities in areas such as cosmetics and wellness and called for structured storytelling platforms through regional ambassadors to promote Uganda’s coffee identity more consistently.
“We created the different regions. Who are the ambassadors? Who will be telling that story? It would be very good to have that platform of coffee ambassadors,” Biriggwa said.
She compared coffee’s growth potential to the evolution of wine culture, arguing that industries expand when long-term vision and belief are consistently nurtured.
Journalist Canary Mugume, one of the organisers of the Ntungamo bootcamp, said structured engagement between media and industry players is key to improving the quality of Uganda’s coffee narrative.
He noted that the training helped journalists better understand the value chain and the importance of in-depth reporting on the sector.
The journalists and media personalities recognised included Samuel Muhimba of Nile Post, Malcom Musiime of NTV Uganda, Geoffrey Serugo of The Observer, Patricia Osman of Capital FM, Rogers Atukunda of SoftPower News, and Kamazima Aine (social media), among others.
