THE BIOSPHERE RESERVE

A “Public-Private-Partnership” (PPP) Project was initiated in 2003 to establish marketing strategies for wild coffee from the Kafa region in order to conserve the coffee forests and improve the livelihood of local people. In order to reinforce these goals, the project also started to promote the UNESCO Biosphere Reserve concept for the Kafa Zone.

The Kafa Coffee Biosphere Reserve Initiative intends to create a pilot model region for conservation and sustainable development in rural areas of Kafa by applying the principles of the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme of United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation UNESCO.