The Coffee and Tea of Burundi: A Heritage to Defend, Challenges to Overcome, an Future to Build
Published on July 28, 2025
Coffee and tea are not simple crops in Burundi; they are the DNA of our economy, the reflection of our history, the mirror of our current challenges, and the promise of our future. To understand their true place in our nation, one must travel through time with a critical eye, analyze the present with lucidity, and dare to draw the outlines of a future where prosperity is finally shared.
1. HISTORY: From a Colonial Tool to a National Pride, an Ambivalent Heritage
The history of coffee in Burundi, introduced by the Belgians in the 1920s, is not a neutral one. It is the story of a coercive economy. The coffee tree, mainly the Arabica Bourbon variety, was imposed on local populations not for their development, but to serve an extractive system aimed at supplying Europe. For decades, coffee symbolized forced labor and an economic dependency where the wealth, born from the sweat on our hills, went to enrich other nations.
Independence in 1962 left Burundi with this complex legacy. The post-colonial state, seeking sources of revenue, nationalized part of the sector and attempted to reclaim this culture. Tea, meanwhile, was developed later, starting in the 1960s, with the creation of the Office du Thé du Burundi (OTB) with a view to diversification.
It was not until the end of the 20th and the beginning of the 21st century that the perception truly changed. Faced with the price crisis of standard coffee, Burundi was forced to reinvent itself. This is where the “quality revolution” was born. Washing stations were built or renovated, and farmers were trained in selective harvesting techniques (picking only ripe cherries). The result was spectacular: Burundian coffee, with its complex notes of citrus, flowers, and berries, began to win international awards like the “Cup of Excellence.” From a colonial crop, coffee became an ambassador for the richness of our land. But this heritage of pride remains built on historically fragile foundations.
2. CHALLENGES: The Structural Battles of Today
The present state of the sector is not a simple list of problems; it is a set of structural battles where the farmer, the essential link, is also the most vulnerable.
- The Tyranny of an Anonymous World Market: The price of coffee and tea is set on the stock exchanges of New York and London, in a speculative game disconnected from the reality on the ground. Whether the harvest is good or bad, whether the work is hard or not, the Burundian farmer endures this volatility without any power. They are a “price taker,” never a “price maker.”
- The Value Chain: An Architecture of Injustice: The current structure is designed to extract value at every step at the expense of the producer. The farmer, who bears all the risks (climate, disease), sometimes receives only 5 to 10% of the final price paid by the consumer in Europe. Intermediaries, transporters, exporters, insurers, roasters, and distributors share the lion’s share. It is an architecture of injustice that perpetuates poverty.
- The Double Jeopardy: Aging Plantations and the Climate Emergency: Most of Burundi’s coffee trees are old varieties, planted over 50 years ago. Their productivity is in natural decline. Added to this is the climate emergency: seasons are becoming unpredictable, rains are either too scarce (water stress) or too violent (soil erosion), and new diseases are emerging. It is a race against time for the very survival of the plantations.
- Financial Exclusion: Access to credit remains a dream for the majority of farmers. Commercial banks, being risk-averse, consider agriculture a high-risk sector. Without financing, it is impossible to renovate an orchard, invest in an irrigation system, or buy quality inputs. It is a vicious cycle that blocks all modernization.
- Corruption, an Endemic Cancer: The scourge of corruption and looting is perhaps the most demoralizing. It manifests at all levels: from rigged weighing at the washing station, to the embezzlement of subsidies, to the opaque management of cooperatives by local elites. It is not just a theft of money; it is a theft of hope.
3. FUTURE PERSPECTIVES: Building Economic Sovereignty
Faced with these systemic challenges, the solutions can only be radical and courageous. It is not about dressing wounds, but about rebuilding the system.
- The Revolution of Local Added Value: The future is no longer in exporting raw materials (green coffee), but in local processing. Why not roast, grind, and package a larger portion of our coffee in Burundi? This creates jobs, develops skills, and allows us to capture a much larger share of the value. We must support the creation of 100% Burundian coffee brands, ready to be sold on shelves worldwide.
- Vertical Integration through Cooperative-Enterprises: Cooperatives must evolve. From simple collectors, they must become true agro-industrial enterprises. They must be able to manage modern washing stations, invest in roasting units, develop marketing strategies, and negotiate directly with international buyers. The state has a crucial role to play by providing a favorable legal framework and technical and financial support for this empowerment.
- Technology as a Tool for Transparency and Inclusion: Technology is not a gimmick. Tools like blockchain can create unforgeable traceability, allowing the final consumer to scan a QR code on their coffee package and see the face and story of the farmer who grew it. Mobile finance platforms (Mobile Money) can be used to pay the farmer directly on their phone, eliminating intermediaries and the risk of embezzlement.
- Smart Diversification and Agro-tourism: Monoculture is a trap. It is vital to encourage polyculture. Intercropping (planting banana, avocado, or bean trees between coffee trees) ensures food security and diversifies income. Furthermore, the breathtaking landscapes of our coffee regions are an untapped asset. Developing agro-tourism circuits, where visitors pay for an immersive “grain to cup” experience, can become a significant source of income uncorrelated with world market prices.
- Unrelenting Justice as the Foundation of Trust: No development is possible without a strong rule of law. The establishment of a special brigade or a financial prosecutor’s office dedicated to economic crimes in the agricultural sector is an absolute necessity. When farmers see that stealing their labor inevitably leads to prison, trust in the system will be reborn, and with it, the desire to invest and produce.
Conclusion:
History has taught us that wealth without justice is a poison. The present shows us that survival without dignity is a form of slavery. The future, for its part, asks us a single question: will we have the courage to write our own definition of prosperity?
The future of coffee and tea in Burundi will not be found in the fluctuations of world markets, but, as URN HITAMWONEZA believes, in the strength of our vision. A vision where economic sovereignty is not a distant dream, but a decision. The decision to build, here and now, a just future.