The support will be channelled through the United Nations Industrial Development Organization UNIDO as part Italyºs three projects in Africa and the Middle East.
Under the Mozambique project, UNIDO will partner with Illycaffe and the Ernesto Illy Foundation to develop the Ibo specialty coffee.
According to UNIDO, similar efforts were already successfully undertaken in Ethiopia, also with Italian funding.
Giorgio Marrapodi of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation said in a media statement to APA that “the decision was taken because of UNIDOs competence in analysing and upgrading agribusiness value chains which, he argued, is essential to improve the performance of developing countries, especially through public-private partnerships.”
Ibo Island is in the Quirimbas archipelago and forms part of the Quirimbas National Park.
It is home to the coffea racemose loureiro plant whose beans produce a floral coffee noted for its low levels of caffeine.