Coffee is an anchor for rural development. – Bill Clinton

• Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos recognized the FNC’s efforts towards a higher income for coffee producers and its fostering of social development in rural Colombia.

Medellín, Colombia, July 11, 2017 – During his participation in the 1st World Coffee Producers Forum, former US President Bill Clinton, an advocate of poverty alleviation and rural development, said coffee is an anchor for rural development.

Clinton took part in the panel talk “Economic Sustainability and Rural Development to Promote Global Stability and Democracy” along with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos. He talked about post-conflict scenarios as development triggers, noting that adding is better than subtracting, and multiplying is better than dividing.

Clinton described coffee as an anchor for stability and a barrier to illegal activities such as drug trafficking and recommended coffee growers to seek complementary income-generating activities, noting that in countries that are rich in biodiversity, such as Colombia or Brazil, developing ecotourism in coffee regions is a good alternative.

In line with the Forum’s spirit, Clinton highlighted the importance of promoting shared responsibility among all players of the coffee chain for achieving sustainability. To advance in this issue, he suggested setting a broad goal and then breaking it down into smaller, more achievable goals.

President Santos celebrated the strategic nature of the Colombian Coffee Growers Federation (FNC) in working to achieve a higher income for producers while fostering social development in rural Colombia through infrastructure investment (roads, electrification, schools and hospitals.)

“That’s precisely why coffee regions show higher well-being levels than the other rural areas,” he said.