Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/1469697
40 STiR coffee and tea / Issue 3, 2022 (June / July) T o improve rural livelihoods the Asian De- velopment Bank organized a new project to improve the livelihoods of Timor-Leste's coffee farmers called the Coffee and Agroforestry Livelihood Improvement Project. Using an initial grant of US$4.5 million, the team leading this ef- fort focused on implementing Timor-Leste's new coffee sector development plan. Their strategy is to pilot a new model for delivering training to 2,000 coffee farming households in the Aileu, Ai- naro, Bobonaro, Ermera, Liquica, and Manufahi municipalities. These households receive training on good agricultural practices for production of coffee and related crops – and they get access to finance. The project aims to strengthen industry management by supporting initiatives which im- prove coffee quality and strengthening critical linkages with key markets. The project team be- lieves that this promotes both rural development and food security. Improvements in coffee production and pro- cessing offer one of the clearest pathways for re- ducing poverty and growing Timor-Leste's non- oil economy. Coffee provides an important source of cash income for around 27.5% of Timorese households and is the country's largest non-oil export. However, the coffee sector currently op- erates far below its long-term potential. Produc- tion is low and volatile, quality is inconsistent, and sector management is weak. Current yields of Timor-Leste's Coffee and Agroforestry Livelihood Improvement Project Coffee is one of Timor-Leste's most important crops, bringing much-needed revenue to the country. Magdalena Salsinha, holding coffee beans, has been picking coffee since she was 15 years old. Now 55, she lives near Ermera and is married with six children. Photo ID 470250. 15/04/2011. Timor-Leste. UN Photo/Martine Perret. www.unmultimedia.org/photo/ By Gordon Feller arabica coffee are approximately 200kg of green bean equivalent per hectare (ha). This compares to a global average of 743kg/ha, and an average yield in comparative countries of 787kg/ha. As a result, many coffee producing households live in extreme poverty. Strengthening sector man- agement and providing targeted support to small- holder producers generates sustained increases in household income. If implemented at scale, this could have a significant impact on the national poverty rate and growth of non-oil exports. There have been several phases in the de- velopment of Timor-Leste's coffee sector. The first significant plantings were made in the 1860s when the Portuguese colonial authorities required households in some areas to plant coffee. During 1890-1920, large private and state-owned planta- tions were established with support from the co- lonial government. Since then, the sector grew through increased planting by smallholder farm- ers. These farmers often acted on their own initia- tive, but the colonial period also saw a range of government sponsored programs to encourage or coerce local people into producing coffee. From 1975-1994, one company was granted an exclusive license to manage the plantation sector and coffee trade. The Indonesian military played a substantial role in the coffee trade during this period, and the price paid to smallholders was as little as 1/6 of the price paid in other parts of In-