Rwanda’s earnings from this year’s Internet coffee auction rose significantly to $301,771 (about Rwf212.7 million) compared to Rwf159.3 million ($225,970) realised at last year’s auction from 16 lots.

This year, 28 lots of coffee, or 15,200 kilogrammes of the green beans category, were sold via the Alliance for Coffee Excellence (ACE), a New York-based website. A kilogramme went for a maximum of $81 compared to $45 last year.

Eighty-six companies from 18 countries across the world participated in the auction held at the National Agricultural Exports Board (Naeb) offices in Kigali on Wednesday.

The coffee was part of the 179 lots that were selected during last month’s 2014 Rwanda Cup of Excellence, said Eric Ruganintwali, the quality and regulation manager at Naeb. Ruganintwali is also the co-ordinator of Rwanda Cup of Excellence.

CFC Muhondo Coffee Washing Station pocketed $50,000 (Rwf35.3 million) from 660 kilogrammes to emerge the top earners, followed by Muyongwe Coffee Washing Station, which fetched $36,654 (Rwf25.8 million). Ruvumbu bagged $10,479 (Rwf7.4 million), while Nyagatare Coffee Washing Station realised $10,194.3 (Rwf7.2 million).

Tony Sanganira, the State Minister for Agriculture, attributed the good performance to improved quality.

"The fact that our coffee has attracted $81 per kilogramme online should be a signal to all stakeholders, especially farmers to focus on quality along the supply value chain. Let’s target a record $100 per kilogramme in the coming auction so that farmers can benefit more and improve the livelihoods,” Sanganira told The New Times.

He urged farmers and traders to embrace online trading as a marketing tool for Rwandan products.

He re-affirmed government’s commitment to continue investing in agriculture, in terms of input subsides and infrastructure development to scale up productivity.

Amb. George Kayonga, Naeb director general, said there were ongoing efforts to popularise Rwanda Cup of Excellence so that farmers can take advantage of the competitive prices presented by online coffee trading.

Kayonga stressed that efforts to improve quality and productivity were ongoing, including investing in mechanism to combat the potato test, which is threatening the coffee industry.

Rwanda’s coffee exports brought in $56 million in 2013 and $12.8 million during the first half of 2014.

According to National Bank of Rwanda’s statistics, the country’s exports dropped by 36 per cent during the first half of the year due to a decline in coffee export volumes, a factor attributed to bad weather.