Meet The Farmers: Watsebule Aliyi

Meet Aliyi Watsebule.

Aliyi lives in the village of Mukhubu, high up on the slopes of Mt Elgon, and is one of our farmer group leaders. He has been involved in coffee all of his life – from picking coffee as a child, to now being a hugely influential farmer in his community.

Since the start of Zukuka Bora, he has been one of our biggest supporters and advocates – working closely with his group of 30 farmers to implement key quality coffee practices such as applying organic fertiliser and pesticide, and maintaining good shade cover for the coffee.

Working with our teams in the community we deliberately chose group leaders who would take on board the quality improvements themselves, and then work for the wider benefits of their community by training and influencing others. Aliyi, being one of the most experienced coffee farmers in the region has done a sterling job in encouraging his neighbours, as well as representing Zukuku Bora in coffee meetings in Mbale town.

In the last season Aliyi was one of the first farmers to really get on board with the harvesting of perfectly ripe cherries, and ended up being one of our largest suppliers! With a huge family to support (more than 10 children!), the higher rate we were paying on the mountain meant that he was able to afford the school fees and requirements that such a large family demands!