Friends of Zoka
District Council resolution formally recognises ZOKA COFFEE — an indigenous wild variety found only in the Zoka Central Forest Reserve — following a civic petition by Friends of Zoka, opening the path to international scientific classification.
ADJUMANI, Uganda, May 11, 2026
— The Adjumani District Council has formally named a rare wild coffee indigenous to the Zoka Central Forest Reserve as ZOKA COFFEE, in a resolution that conservationists say could focus international scientific attention on one of northern Uganda’s most ecologically significant forests. The decision followed a formal petition to the Council by Friends of Zoka, filed at the urging of the organisation’s chairman, Angelo Izama.
The Council passed Resolution MIN: 07/OCM/07/05/2026 on 7 May 2026, directing technical departments, through the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer, to engage national authorities, the National Agricultural Research Organisation (NARO), and civil society organisations, including Friends of Zoka, to formalise the naming in line with national and international scientific and policy standards.
“Zoka Forest has sheltered this coffee for millennia. Its name now dignifies its location and the heritage of the Ma’adi community. This is long overdue.”
Angelo Izama, Chairman, Friends of Zoka
Wild coffee species have become a priority for researchers as climate change threatens the commercial varieties — Arabica and Robusta — that underpin a global industry valued at more than $460 billion. Scientists are urgently documenting wild relatives whose genetic traits, including drought tolerance, disease resistance, and flavour complexity, may be critical to the crop’s survival. The Zoka Central Forest Reserve, a closed-canopy tropical reserve in Adjumani District, has been identified as a potentially significant repository of such genetic diversity.
The resolution sets the stage for peer-reviewed botanical classification and potential listing under international biodiversity frameworks. For communities living adjacent to the reserve, formalised recognition also creates a foundation for geographical indication protections, eco-tourism, and
sustainable livelihoods tied to conservation rather than to encroachment.
“Naming Zoka Coffee focuses scientific attention on the forest, creates an identity that conservation can rally around, and gives local communities a direct stake in protecting what grows there. The Council’s resolution turns a conservation argument into public policy.”
Amanzuru William LESLIE, Team Leader, Friends of Zoka
The resolution marks the most significant civic and policy milestone in the history of Friends of Zoka, which this year celebrates a decade of working to protect the reserve from illegal logging, agricultural encroachment, and charcoal burning. The organisation is calling on government ministries, research institutions, international conservation bodies, and the global speciality coffee industry to support the formalisation of the naming and to invest in the long-term protection of the Zoka Central Forest Reserve.
Key Information
1. The Resolution
Adjumani District Council Resolution MIN: 07/OCM/07/05/2026 was passed on 7 May 2026 at an ordinary council meeting. It formally names and recognises the wild indigenous coffee found in the Zoka Central Forest Reserve as ZOKA COFFEE, and directs the Office of the Chief Administrative Officer to initiate engagement with national authorities, NARO, and relevant NGOs to formalise the naming in line with national and international scientific and policy standards.
2. Zoka Central Forest Reserve
The Zoka Central Forest Reserve is a closed-canopy tropical forest located in Adjumani District, northern Uganda. It is among the most ecologically significant forests in the West Nile sub-region and is home to diverse flora and fauna, including the wild coffee variety now designated ZOKA COFFEE. The reserve is under threat from illegal logging, agricultural encroachment, and charcoal burning.
3. The Ma’adi Community
The Zoka Central Forest Reserve lies within the traditional territory of the Ma’adi community.
The naming of ZOKA COFFEE formally connects the coffee’s identity to this indigenous heritage and to the stewardship the community has exercised over the forest for generations.
4. Wild Coffee and Climate Change
Global coffee production, dominated by Coffea arabica and Coffea canephora (Robusta), faces severe risk from rising temperatures, shifting rainfall patterns, and emerging pests and diseases. Wild coffee species and subspecies are considered a critical genetic reservoir. Research institutions including the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew have identified the documentation and protection of wild African coffee as a global conservation priority. Uganda is home to several indigenous wild coffee species, but systematic classification of varieties such as ZOKA COFFEE remains at an early stage.
5. About Friends of Zoka
Founded in 2016, Friends of Zoka is a Ugandan conservation organisation dedicated to the protection of the Zoka Central Forest Reserve. In its tenth anniversary year, the organisation works with government institutions, research partners, civil society, cultural leaders, and local communities to safeguard the ecological integrity of the reserve and support the sustainable wellbeing of neighbouring communities.
Motto: “My Environment, My Life.”
6. About Amanzuru William LESLIE
Amanzuru William is the Team Leader of Friends of Zoka and presented the organisation’s petition before the Adjumani District Council. He is available for an interview on request.
8. Interviews and Materials
Angelo Izama and Amanzuru William LESLIE are available for an interview. Please contact the media team using the details below.
MEDIA CONTACTS
E-mail: [email protected]
Tel: +256 775 699 494 | +256 770 547 393
Web: www.friendsofzoka.org
Social: Facebook: Friends of Zoka
Twitter/X: @FriendsofZoka
This post was created with our nice and easy submission form. Create your post!
Written by
Friends of ZOKA (FoZ) was founded as a pressure group to safe Zoka Forest Reserve in Adjumani in 2016.
Did this story move you? Every gift goes directly to Friends of Zoka — writers on Muwado earn from reader appreciation, not algorithms. Even $1 makes a difference.
Muwado weekly chart
Get Africa’s top 10 stories every Thursday
No account needed — just your email.
Want to follow Friends of Zoka and get notified every time they publish?
Create a free Muwado account →