Coffee farmers open new office

Business, Normal
Source:

The National, Tuesday 30th April 2013

 A NEW office for Ufeto coffee farmers in Goroka district operating under the Apo, Angra, and Kange (AAK) Cooperatives has been opened in their village.

The cooperative management decided to decentralise its operations to 81 cluster groups in Western Highlands, Jiwaka, Chimbu and Eastern Highlands. 

Cooperative coordinator Brian Kuglame said the cluster groups were given cash, coffee scale and cash books to implement coffee activities of their cluster group members.

He said the AAK Cooperatives would only provide overall management including capacity building, scholarship, housing, school fee and other incentive schemes introduced by local and overseas partners.

Kuglame challenged cluster group leaders to handle their office with transparency and accountability, now that they were responsible for their own daily operations.

In the past 12 years, farmers had to go to the main office in Goroka to be served.

The decentralisation exercise started in mid-April in Eastern Highlands and will be completed next month in Western Highlands.

The occasion also coincided with the graduation of 11 cluster group leaders from these provinces on bee farming.