By Concetta Bianco | FSSFS Project Manager
Dear Friend,
Greetings from Puntland, Somalia!
We are enormously grateful for your support of the project "Give Clean Water & Energy to 350 Somali Families". We want to share with you some exciting updates on the progress made.
In the months from November 2021 to February 2022 we had a lot of work accomplished. The establishment of two pilot farms and two dates processing units, one in El-Dahir and one in Jibagalle, were finally completed and 3000 date palm seedlings for our beneficiaries have finally reached their destination.
We keep on moving forward despite all the challenges, but we need your continuous support to continue the implementation of this exciting project!
Arrival of date palm seedlings
After a long and challenging process of procurement, the date palm seedlings for our beneficiaries were finally delivered to our office in Bossaso in January and immediately checked by our staff.
Date seedlings were propagated in vitro in the United Arab Emirates, they are between 8 and 14 months old, and are of different varieties as specified below:
- 800 seedlings of Majool variety
- 1,300 seedlings of variety Khalas
- 700 seedlings of Barhi variety
- 200 seedlings of Ghanami variety
Once welcomed by CEFA staff, the seedlings were transported and irrigated at the nursery set up by CEFA in Karin Ago, Bari region, where they will remain for the next 4-6 months for acclimatization before being distributed to farmers in Puntland.
Another 1,000 seedlings are expected at the end of March 2022.
On-job training on Procurement and Engineering Reporting for the Students and Young Professionals
In order to complete the 2021 on-the-job training activities, CEFA organized two days of workshop for students, professionals, and contractors for the FSSFS project in Martisoor Hotel Garowe. The workshop ran from 15th -16th December 2021 and was attended by 50 people from PSU (Puntland State University), East Africa University, and contractors. The main learning activities of the workshop were oriented on procurement procedures and engineering report writing.
The workshop aimed also to create an environment for the students to showcase the skills learned during the on-job training and share their experience with the on-job training activity. The workshop presented a great opportunity for the contractors to showcase the services they offered.
Eventually, the workshop presented the students with opportunities to interact with the service providers (contractors) who are their potential employers. CEFA on the other hand took the opportunity to present to the contractors how they should fill in the tender documents in consideration for future calls.
Completion of the construction of the small-scale dates processing units in El-Dahir and Jibagale pilot farms.
The works have started successfully in September 2021. The structure of the two processing units has now been completed and is ready to be on a service! Both the processing units will equipped for the processing of the dates, including washing, sorting, drying, sealing and packaging process.
The processing unit in El-Dahir will be entirely powered by the Off-Grid Box solar energy system, generating zero CO2 emissions and contributing towards the improvement of the post-harvesting process of dates in Puntland.
Innovative model of dates solar dryer ICARO, Off-Grid-Box and Drip Irrigation System for date palm farming are in Salalah!
The container for the shipment of the Off-Grid Box, master model of ICARO and all necessary supplies for Drip Irrigation System for date palm farming has finally arrived from Italy to the port of Salalah, in Oman, and it will be subsequently transferred to the port of Bossaso, in Puntland, predictably by the end of March.
CEFA staff is excited to start manufacturing the dates solar dryer in Puntland, in collaboration with the local private sector following all the supplementary materials including construction manual and a video tutorial that have been produced by the Polytechnic University of Turin, which are always supportive and present to help our staff in supervising the replication of the “Icaro” in Puntland through remote technical support.
Due to the adoption of sustainable technologies and renewable energy, the date harvest will be guaranteed even in critical conditions, in particular during periods of increased drought, because the community is experiencing water savings of about 35-40% compared to traditional methods, reducing irrigation costs due to the use of clean energy, and improving production thanks to the training and tools they have received.
Puntland Mission and new Project Manager handover
In order to complete the handover of the project to the new Project Manager, all the team has united in Puntland to discuss all the past achievements and the future evolution of our project. Our team visited all the construction sites, nurseries and pilot farms confirming a great commitment of the staff on the ground and stakeholders at an institutional level and in the private sector, in order to improve food security conditions and increase income opportunities in agriculture for Puntland communities.
From this mission our team confirms its commitment in working to strengthen skills in the field, raising awareness among local authorities, facilitating access to the labor market, and providing quality agricultural inputs to implement the best practices that have been tried so far.
Please keep supporting us in seeing this project taking over and giving more sustainable access to clean water, energy, and food for Somali families!
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