Ethiopia, the original home of arabica coffee, is the world's tenth largest coffee producer and the third largest producer in Africa, with a total annual production of 350,000 metric tons. Approximately 90% of the land used for coffee cultivation in Ethiopia is held by small farms, whereas the remaining 10% is covered by forest coffee, state farms and privately-owned farms.
Japan is the second largest consumer of Ethiopian coffee after Germany. Mitsubishi Ethiopia Trading Private Limited Company purchases, trades and performs quality control of coffee, mainly for exports to Japan, Europe and some U.S. markets. The total volume of our annual coffee transactions is about 8,500-9,500 metric tons, which represents between 15 and 17 million U.S. dollars in sales.
Mitsubishi Corporation (MC) has earned immense recognition in Ethiopia from the government and private organizations. We have recorded strong performance over the past several years. Looking beyond day-to-day business operations, we have striven to find growing areas that can produce higher quality coffee and better meet the needs of roasters. At the same time, MC has sought to periodically introduce new products and to give consumers a clear picture of products and related activities. Thanks to these efforts, MC has identified a first-class premium coffee that has been successfully promoted to Starbucks Coffee in the U.S. At the same time, we have created a strong partnership for these products and helped to win Starbucks' exclusive award for the producer.
We believe that knowing our customers is vital to our business as it allows us to better support both suppliers and buyers. At the same time, we have worked to strengthen partnerships and further develop our role as a vital intermediary in the business, thereby fortifying our position as a competitive and dependable supplier in the industry.
Located on the Horn of Africa on the eastern side of the continent, Ethiopia is approximately three times the size of Japan and has a population of 72 million people. While people tend to think of Africa as having an extremely hot climate, the capital city of Addis Ababa is located at an altitude of 2,400 meters and enjoys very comfortable conditions throughout the year.
Ethiopia's chief industry is agriculture. Being free from drought over the past three years, agricultural production in Ethiopia has been steadily rising and the economy has been growing at an average rate of more than 10%. Ethiopia uses the Ethiopic calendar*, unique to this country, according to which next year will be the year 2000. The excitement surrounding the approaching millennium has kindled a construction boom in Addis Ababa, with new roads, buildings, hotels and homes being built around the city.
Ethiopia is known as the land where coffee originated, and Ethiopian coffee beans are widely marketed in Japan as mocha coffee. Coffee beans also represent a major share of MC's business in Ethiopia. Both of our staff engaged in the coffee business are certified cup tasters** and they carefully check the quality of beans before they are shipped. One of them has even been certified as an International Cup Taster in Brazil.
Other major areas of business for our office include automobiles, tires and chemical products. We also began to deal in sesame seeds last year. Ethiopia's infrastructure is still underdeveloped, and so Official Development Assistance (ODA) from Japan focused on infrastructure projects is vital to the country. In fact, Japan is the second highest aid donor to Ethiopia after the United States. Mitsubishi Ethiopia Trading is involved in infrastructure development, such as road repair and groundwater projects. We are also supporting the development of agriculture, such as through business related to fertilizer. Recently, some companies in the area have begun cultivating crops for use in bio-fuel, and we expect to see this develop into a promising commodity in the future.
Ethiopian civilization has a long history, even compared to other African nations. Menelik I, the first emperor of Ethiopia, is said to be the son of the Queen of Sheba and King Solomon of Israel. According to legend, Menelik I brought the Ark of the Covenant to Ethiopia from ancient Israel around 10th century BCE. A church in Axum in the northern part of Ethiopia is said to possess the Ark, which is believed to hold the stone tablets bearing the Ten Commandments.
Even with its long history and reputation as the "cradle of humanity", Ethiopia has largely been left behind by the advance of the global economy thus far, but I believe this is changing. I expect to see environmentally sound development, focusing on agriculture, realized here in the future, and all of us at Mitsubishi Ethiopia Trading hope to contribute to this development through MC's business activities.
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The Ethiopic calendar is somewhat different from the Gregorian calendar, which is more common around the world. According to the Ethiopic calendar, this year is 1999. Ethiopia will mark the millennium on September 12, 2007 (by the Gregorian calendar). |
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Cup tasters sample coffee to assess the flavor and aroma of various types of coffees produced in different regions. |
Ethiopia and Japan have long-standing relations, which have endured for more than 50 years. After visiting Japan in 1956, the late Ethiopian Emperor Hailesilassie allotted a plot of land in his palace for the construction of a Japanese Garden. In 1960, Japan's Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko−then the Crown Prince and Princess−visited Ethiopia and toured the Japanese Garden (picture to the right).
Built on 6,300 square meters, the garden was renovated in 2005 to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the restoration of diplomatic ties between Ethiopia and Japan. The garden has a Japanese tea hut and an Ethiopian coffee hut that entertain guests in traditional tea and coffee ceremonies. It also has a waterfall, a stream, a pond and wooden bridges. A cherry tree, an enduring symbol of Japan, grows in the Rock Garden beside the Japanese tea hut. The garden also includes a friendship monument honoring the mutual understanding and cooperation between the two countries.
MC donated 9 million yen for the renovation of the garden, a reflection of the company's strong sense of responsibility to society. In this way, MC has affirmed its commitment to serve as a link between the two countries, through its subsidiary, Mitsubishi Ethiopia Trading.
Religious celebrations in Ethiopia are often grand, colorful events. Among the traditions of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church is the Meskal festival, dating back 1,600 years. The two-day festival at the end of September celebrates the finding of the "True Cross" upon which Jesus Christ is said to have been crucified. During the festival, yellow Meskel daisies are placed on top of huge bonfires that are lit at sunset. Priests in brightly colored robes lead a procession of students and brass bands. They dance around the fires, singing, chanting and carrying flaming torches.
Meskel actually means "cross" and the flowering of the cross-shaped Meskel daisies also marks the end of the three-month rainy season and the return of the sun.
East Africa is widely thought to be the cradle of humanity. In 1974, researchers discovered one of the best preserved ancient human skeletons in Hadar, Ethiopia. Anthropologists assembled about 40% of the skeleton of a young girl, which was dated between 3.8 and 3 million years ago. Researchers nicknamed their find "Lucy", but Ethiopians prefer to call her "Dinkinesh", meaning "you are wonderful". Because her skeleton was so complete, Lucy provided researchers with many new insights, including evidence that early humans were walking around long before the earliest stone tools were made or before humans' brains became enlarged.
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