STORY: Vlog: The coffee journey from bean to cup, from Africa to China
DATELINE: July 1, 2023
LENGTH: 00:03:06
LOCATION: CHANGSHA, China
CATEGORY: ECONOMY

SHOTLIST:
1. STANDUP 1 (English): YU JIAMING, Xinhua correspondent
2. STANDUP 2 (English): HABTAMU WORKU, Xinhua reporter
3. SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ABDI ZENEBE, Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway Share Company (EDR)
4. SOUNDBITE 2 (Amharic): GELETA TASEW, Train captain at the Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway
5. STANDUP 3 (English): HABTAMU WORKU, Xinhua reporter
6. STANDUP 4 (English): YU JIAMING, Xinhua correspondent
7. SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): JING JIANHUA, Founder of Own Master Coffee in Hunan Province

STORYLINE:

STANDUP 1 (English): YU JIAMING, Xinhua correspondent
"Food, handicrafts, costumes, and even jewellery... Here in Changsha, China, I'm surrounded by products from Africa, which is thousands of kilometers away. To uncover the journey these products have gone through, I've decided to make a video call with my colleague on the other side of the Earth. Hi, Habtamu."

STANDUP 2 (English): HABTAMU WORKU, Xinhua reporter
"Hi, Jiaming. I'm here at Lebu railway station in Ethiopia. From here, cargoes from the landlocked capital Addis Ababa will be transported to a port in neighboring Djibouti, and from there, will be shipped to the rest of the world.
The Ethiopia-Djibouti trade corridor is a main gateway for Ethiopia, with a significant part of Ethiopia's imports and exports passing through it. In the past, it would take more than a week for companies to bring their goods from Addis Ababa to Djibouti. Now, the Chinese-built Addis Ababa-Djibouti railway has reduced the time to just less than 10 hours."

SOUNDBITE 1 (English): ABDI ZENEBE, Chief executive officer (CEO) of the Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway Share Company (EDR)
"This railway is a very critical infrastructure as the realization of our business is growing by the day. Our coffee is one major important item from Ethiopia that directly goes to China. It also helps the exporters to transport their commodities in a much (more) speedy manner. This is creating new cities where thousands of people can get jobs, and the industry can grow."

SOUNDBITE 2 (Amharic): GELETA TASEW, Train captain at the Ethiopia-Djibouti Railway
"The railway's socioeconomic advantage goes far beyond serving transportation.
This railway is facilitating Ethiopian exports to China, Europe, other far east countries and elsewhere across the globe via ports in Djibouti."

STANDUP 3 (English): HABTAMU WORKU, Xinhua reporter
"Not only has the railway significantly improved the freight market, the railway's managers say they are enriching services toward realizing the two countries' ambition of building an industrial and economic belt, ultimately driving the economic and social development of the two countries."

STANDUP 4 (English): YU JIAMING, Xinhua correspondent
"Thank you, Habtamu. Now, at the China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo, we can also find some products from Ethiopia.
This coffee is just one of the products shipped from Ethiopia all the way to Changsha."

SOUNDBITE 3 (Chinese): JING JIANHUA, Founder of Own Master Coffee in Hunan Province
"Through our store, you can have a close-up understanding of coffee from Africa, from cultivation to processing and production, as well as African culture. You'll get to experience Africa through a single cup of coffee.
We have always been directly sourcing coffee beans from coffee farmers in Africa. Through our own coffee roasting facility, we present consumers with a freshly roasted cup of coffee, with coffee beans directly procured from Africa."

The third China-Africa Economic and Trade Expo is held in Changsha from Thursday to Sunday.
The expo aims to welcome more "Made in Africa" products into China and boost business links between the two sides.

Xinhua News Agency correspondents reporting from Changsha, China.
(XHTV)