GENJI ILBU

After 8 years of working as a supplier to coffee exporters, Abdo Abamecha started collecting and exporting the coffee from farms around his village in 2023. Perched about 2050 metres above sea level in Meti kebele, Gera woreda, Jimma Zone, his processing station has evolved rapidly since it opened in 2017 with a handful of drying beds and a lone depulper that handled fewer than 20 tonnes of cherry per season. A major 2021 upgrade saw the installation of a low water eco-pulping machine, expanded the site to 150 raised beds, added warehouse space, and built water-clarification ponds, lifting annual capacity to well over 100 tonnes. During the main harvest the station employs roughly 70 seasonal workers alongside six permanent staff.