Business
Lingzhi Global, NACOFTAN Announce 2026 Coffee Festival in Cross River
Lingzhi Global Nigeria Ltd. has announced plans to hold the second edition of the Coffee Festival International Nigeria in Calabar, Cross River State, from October 30 to November 1, 2026, as part of efforts to promote coffee production and expand opportunities across the value chain.
The festival, organised in collaboration with the National Coffee and Tea Association of Nigeria, NACOFTAN, will be held under the theme, “Coffee Sustainability and Empowerment: Focusing on Women and Youth Development,” with emphasis on skills development, community development and job creation.
The Chief Executive Officer of Lingzhi Global, Mrs. Blessing Nanman, disclosed this at a stakeholders’ meeting in Abuja, saying the event would bring together coffee stakeholders, investors and international participants to explore opportunities in farming, processing, packaging, marketing and export.
“Farmers have gone to work. Some processors are already at the verge of breaking through. This is the time where we want to invite all investors, partners and international organisations to support us in the coffee industry,” Nanman said.
She said the maiden edition attracted participants from different countries, while the 2026 festival is expected to draw representatives from about 30 countries. According to her, the event would further define opportunities within the coffee value chain and encourage local consumption of coffee.
Nanman said Lingzhi Global was also expanding its coffee business through the establishment of coffee shops, noting that the outlets had become platforms where communities, families and people from different backgrounds could connect over coffee.
She said Cross River was selected to host the second edition because of its potential for coffee production and the state government’s efforts to expand cultivation through the distribution of millions of coffee seedlings.
Speaking on the forthcoming festival, Cross River State Commissioner for Agriculture and Irrigation Development, Hon. Johnson Ebokpo, commended Lingzhi Global for its role in promoting coffee and tea development in the state and for working with stakeholders to strengthen the sector.
He said the company had contributed efforts to improve farmers’ access to seedlings, knowledge and markets, describing its partnership with the state as important to the development of the coffee value chain.
“We are pleased to be collaborating with Lingzhi Global, organisers of the International Coffee Festival, and NACOFTAN,” Ebokpo said.
The commissioner said the festival would give Cross River greater visibility as a coffee-producing destination while creating opportunities for women and young people to participate in the industry.
“This is also an opportunity for us to use the festival as a platform to create jobs for our people, particularly women and youths, while providing them with opportunities to learn more and develop their skills,” he said.
Ebokpo said the coffee industry extends beyond farming to processing, packaging and export, stressing that young people could create businesses and develop their own brands by participating in different stages of the value chain.
He said Cross River has about 23,000 square kilometres of arable land suitable for coffee development and has the agro-ecological advantage of producing both Arabica and Robusta varieties. He added that the state plans to distribute at least 30 million coffee seedlings over five years.
President of NACOFTAN, Dr. Hassan Usman, said the festival would provide an opportunity for Nigerian stakeholders to exchange knowledge and technology with international players in the coffee industry.
“The Coffee Festival is not only Nigerian in inclusion, but international. We have people coming from Brazil, Indonesia, Kenya and all the countries. The globe will be around with us,” Usman said.
Usman also commended Lingzhi Global for taking stakeholders across the country and beyond to gain knowledge in coffee processing and marketing, saying the company had played a critical role in connecting Nigerian stakeholders with international opportunities.
He said stakeholders would use the gathering to strategise on strengthening the coffee value chain and changing the narrative around coffee production in Nigeria, while calling for greater participation from government agencies, investors and other stakeholders.
The 2026 Coffee Festival International Nigeria is expected to bring together farmers, processors, roasters, investors, experts and other stakeholders from Nigeria and abroad for three days of knowledge-sharing, networking and promotion of the coffee industry.
Nigeria’s headline inflation rate edged down to 14.63 per cent in September, from 15.39 per cent a month earlier, official data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Thursday, as the pace of increase in price levels continues to slow in Africa’s most populous country.
The development extends the downward trend in annual consumer inflation recorded in recent months, with inflation dropping marginally to 15.39 per cent in August from 15.43 per cent in July.
Food inflation stood at 19.59 per cent year-on-year in September, slightly higher than the 19.57 per cent recorded in August, but lower than the 20.16 per cent reported in September 2025.
Food accounts for a substantial share of household expenditure, particularly among lower-income households.
Core inflation, which excludes volatile items like agricultural produce and energy prices, stood at 12.95 per cent year-on-year in September, down from 13.29 per cent in August and 22.11 per cent in September 2025.
The annual figure indicates a continued slowdown in price increases outside the more volatile food and energy components.
The divergence between the annual and monthly figures suggests that, although underlying inflation has moderated considerably over the past year, some price pressures persisted during September.
Despite the slowdown in inflationary pressures, Nigeria continues to face a cost-of-living crisis, principally on account of elevated food prices and energy costs, which have hammered the disposable income of many households.
The drop in living standards has been fuelled by tough economic reforms introduced by the current administration, including the removal of fuel subsidies, devaluation of the naira and a prolonged hawkish monetary policy stance.
The statistics office’s data also reflected differences between inflation in urban and rural areas.
READ ALSO: CBN restates single-digit inflation target as FG woos investors with tax credits
Urban inflation stood at 15.64 per cent year-on-year in September, down from 20.63 per cent in the corresponding month of 2025. Rural inflation was lower at 12.46 per cent year-on-year, compared with 21.06 per cent in September 2025.
What the figures mean
The September data point to a further slowdown in Nigeria’s inflation rate, with annual headline inflation falling for another month.
A fall in annual inflation means that prices are rising more slowly than they did over the corresponding period a year earlier. A negative monthly rate, such as the September food inflation figure, means that average prices in the measured basket declined compared with the previous month.
With annual food inflation still at 19.59 per cent, the September figures show that the pace of food price increases has moderated over the past year, while the average cost of food remains higher than it was a year ago.
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