A Tale of Beans and Pages: Frederick Kawuma’s Coffee Career and Literary Journey

I am Frederick Kawuma, born at the beginning of 1960, in Bulemezi (one of the old counties of Buganda) to a father who was a coffee farmer, the late Dick Nsereko, and my mother the late Erivansoni Nsereko. Later in life, I ended up in a coffee career, working both in the public and private sectors in Uganda and internationally, and I got to understand the industry’s intricacies more and more. My over 30-year coffee career experience inspired the book _Is There Poverty in Your Cup of Coffee?

During my graduate studies in the mid-1980s, some of my professors noted that I had a gift for writing, and I was encouraged to consider a writing career, which I didn’t pursue. However, I found myself writing professional papers, so when I worked in public service in the 1980s and 1990s, my permanent secretary often asked me to draft statements concerning various positions in the ministry where I worked. Even when I left public service and joined the private sector, I wrote a lot—starting a coffee magazine for the Uganda Coffee Trade Federation and the Uganda annual coffee yearbook.

Also, when I did my doctoral studies, I wrote several papers, some of which were published and crowned with a dissertation about which one of the dissertation committee members congratulated me on my excellent writing skills. As co-author with former doctoral colleagues, I contributed chapters in two books, “Predictors of Calling: The Example of Joseph” in Leadership and Calling Through the Prism of Scripture: A Phenomenological Study of Biblical Leaders and “The Book Metaphor and its Representation of an Organization” in Organizational Metaphors, both published by Palgrave Macmillan. However, the first book I solely authored and published was on coffee, reflecting my years of experience in the industry and the lessons I have learned.

I am currently working on three other books, one of which will come out later this year, giving my testimony since I accepted Christ as my Lord and Saviour 50 years ago. It is a tribute to God for His faithfulness in my life through the last five decades. I’m also working on a book on entrepreneurial leadership in Africa’s agribusiness. The other book I am working on is also about coffee and will be out in 2025, with a different theme from the one I published in 2024.