The coffee industry is making a comeback in DRC. In March, in collaboration with Eastern Congo Initiative (ECI), Starbucks began bringing Starbucks Reserve® Eastern D.R.Congo Lake Kivu to stores in the United States and Canada. In a recent ECI blog post, Baraka Kasali (ECI) and Kisumba Kambale Kamungele (Export Director at Ets. TSONGO KASEREKA and Congo Initiative General Assembly member), took a “new look” at coffee in Congo, describing the resurgence of the coffee sector. And, last week, Saveur du Kivu, held its second celebration of the reemergence of specialty coffee in Bukavu, DRC.

In Beni, a once prominent hub for coffee production, UCBC alumni and students are also aware of the revitalization of Congo’s coffee industry and its importance for stability in the region. Café Kivu, a coffee shop with two locations in Beni, serves up the best coffee in town and employs UCBC alumni like Finance Director, Georges Muhindo Sivihwa. He discusses the impact of Café Kivu and coffee in Congo in the short video below.