For the very first time since its creation in 1963, the International Coffee Organisation (ICO) held a meeting of its highest body on Ivorian soil. This was at the occasion of the 120th session of the International Coffee Council which was convened in Yamoussoukro, from 25 to 29 September 2017.
During this gathering, member-countries decided to embark in a new strategic direction, following the successful completion of the task undertaken by the Working Group on the Strategic Review of the International Coffee Organisation, under the chairmanship of Mr Aly Touré, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire.
As a result, a Five-year Action Plan was adopted with a view to “emphasizing the contribution of coffee to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) through income generation and poverty alleviation”.
A Workshop on Statistics and the 7th Consultative Forum on Coffee Sector Finance were organised alongside the 120th session of the Council. The first event allowed participants to exchange their experiences of data collection and discover ways to improve compliance with the ICO Rules on Statistics. The Forum hosted renowned speakers from across the Globe who explored the theme “Creating an enabling environment for high productivity in coffee farming”.
Delegates were moreover pleased to receive a presentation by the China Coffee Association on the booming coffee industry in China.
Before concluding its session, the International Coffee Council elected its officers for the coffee year 2017/18. Mr Aly Touré, Permanent Representative of Côte d’Ivoire was nominated as the new Chairman of the Council.