We’re pleased to say that things in Alito have gone better this year. Firstly, the recruitment of Giovanni as a local Agronomist has placed some real knowledge on the ground and in the field, and he has gained the respect of the rest of the team.
The choice of planting a crop of sweet potato has also been wise, enabling us to benefit from existing local knowledge in the community and some previous growing experience. We have begun to harvest and results look promising. We’ve prepared several batches and taken them to the local market to sell.
Additionally, the first two-year old coffee plants have arrived, so now we are able to begin the work of creating a coffee plantation. We are still debating how large an area to cultivate for this, but it’s an important step in the overall project. Coffee plants are usually 3-4 years old before the beans are harvestable and usable, so we have a couple more years before we’ll see how well they’ve done.
We’re also delighted to report that Pier Giorgio Lappo, who has been involved with the Alito project from the start, was recently awarded the honour of “Knight of the Order of the Star of Italy”. Italy's ambassador to Uganda, Mauro Massoni, presented Giorgio with the honour, granted by the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella to Giorgio at a ceremony on 27th November.
The "Cavaliere dell'Ordine della Stella d'Italia" is an honour bestowed upon individuals who have promoted relations of friendship and co-operation between Italy and other countries. Giorgio was awarded the important recognition on the strength of his decades-long commitment to Uganda's neediest people, and his work with the Alito project and local communities was particularly acknowledged.