Why Uganda's coffee supply depends on its bees: pollinator health and long-term output
By Sandra Nansbuga
Why Uganda's coffee supply depends on its bees: pollinator health and long-term output
Uganda's plan to raise coffee output to 20 million bags a year rests on more than new seedlings and fertilizer, it also depends on the bees that pollinate its coffee trees. An analysis in The Observer (as archived 2026-09-10) argues that pollination, chiefly by bees, accounts for roughly 60 percent of coffee yield, meaning pollinator decline could cap how much Uganda can reliably sell to international buyers even in good harvest seasons.
The analysis draws on research by Robert Kajobe, a research professor at Muni University and chairperson of the Uganda National Apiculture Development Organization (TUNADO). Kajobe cited work by one of his PhD students concluding that bees underpin a large share of coffee production, and warned that clearing natural vegetation for settlements and farming is shrinking bee habitats and reducing their numbers. For a country whose arabica and robusta sectors are both sold heavily into export markets, that pressure has direct consequences for the Uganda coffee harvest year after year.
TUNADO is pressing the government to formally treat bees as an agricultural input, alongside seedlings and fertilizer, arguing that higher yields cannot be delivered if pollinators are missing. Its executive director, Dickson Biryomumaisho, framed bees as essential to crops Uganda is actively promoting, among them coffee, cashew, macadamia, avocado and citrus. The proposal emerged at the Fourth Africa Region Apimondia Symposium in Uganda.
Uganda already has an estimated 1.3 million beekeepers, according to Kajobe. The country is also one of three African nations permitted to export honey and other bee products to the European Union, although volumes remain modest. TUNADO's practical suggestions include keeping a "bee reserve" of vegetation on farms and a shared system where macadamia trees provide shade while bees pollinate both the macadamia and adjacent coffee. Beyond honey, hives yield beeswax, propolis, bee venom, royal jelly and pollen.
The 20 million bag target itself is not new. Uganda adopted the Uganda Coffee Roadmap in 2017, a national plan to lift production to 20 million bags and raise export earnings to USD 1.5-2.2 billion by 2030. What is new in the Observer analysis is the recognition that pollination is an explicit input in reaching that number, rather than an assumed background condition.
What this means for buyers
For importers and roasters planning Uganda-origin programs, the practical takeaway is that supply reliability has a biological component that weather reports do not fully capture. Flowering and fruit set are the stage where pollinator activity converts into harvest volume, so years with poor pollination will show up later at the Uganda coffee harvest as lower yields even if rainfall and temperatures look normal.
Procurement teams should treat pollinator health as a slow-moving supply risk alongside other structural factors. When Uganda sources are under allocation or a crop falls short of expectations, bee-related yield drag may be part of the explanation, especially where habitat loss is concentrated near producing areas. Asking suppliers about on-farm habitat, shade systems and whether their grower networks keep pollinators in mind gives buyers a more textured read on whether a shortfall is weather-driven or structural.
The macadamia-plus-coffee-plus-bees model TUNADO promotes is worth watching even though it is still rolling out. If it spreads, it could modestly support yields in arabica zones that have room for shade trees, and in robusta areas it may help stabilize the fruit set that determines later output. For now, though, the numbers to track remain official Uganda Coffee Development Authority production and export data each season, with pollination as an underlying influence on how the Uganda coffee harvest performs against those targets.
FAQ
Q: How much of Uganda's coffee yield depends on bees?
A: According to The Observer (as archived 2026-09-10), research cited by Robert Kajobe of Muni University holds that about 60 percent of coffee yield results from pollination, particularly by bees, a figure presented by a PhD student's study.
Q: What is Uganda's coffee production target and where does it come from?
A: Uganda aims to produce 20 million bags annually, a target tied to the Uganda Coffee Roadmap adopted in 2017 to raise output and export earnings to USD 1.5-2.2 billion by 2030, per World Coffee Research.
Q: Why does pollinator health matter to international coffee buyers?
A: Pollination directly affects flowering and fruit set, so weaker pollinator populations translate into lower yield at the Uganda coffee harvest even in seasons with normal weather, making pollinator decline a structural supply-reliability risk for Uganda-origin programs.
Sources: The Observer (archived 2026-09-10) | World Coffee Research