AyoDeks Moringa

The break shelter is complete 🙌⏰

Working on the Moringa sites is hard work and it was established that a place of shelter was needed for our farm caretakers. The shelter provides protection from the elements and a place to rest for much needed breaks throughout the day 🌞 With the rainy season soon approaching, John and Abdul will be able to protect themselves from the monsoon-like rain that descends on Sierra Leone 🌧

The rainy season is no joke in Sierra Leone, as we experienced first-hand last year 😜💦 John and Abdul have expressed their appreciation for this investment and are already making good use of the shelter 😍💚

A water supply 💧🥳

With the nearest well a 15–20-minute walk away, establishing a water supply for the AyoDeks Moringa sites was essential 🌱

The process of digging the well at the second site became difficult when the team encountered large rocks as they went deeper 🪨 With determination and strength, the team were able to reach a source of water and are now in the process of breaking down the rocks 💪

The team have moved across to the first site and are currently working on digging a well to supply this area too. We shall keep you updated on the teams’ effort 😁👊

Before ➡ After 🎉

The additional land purchased in Songo needed clearing in readiness for planting 🌱 The photos show the incredible work our farm caretakers Abdul and John have done to make this happen 👏 Burning the land results in nutrient-rich ash which makes the soil fertile – ideal for planting. The plan is to start planting on this land before the rainy season starts again in May 🌧

We look forward to Moringa trees growing on this land very soon 🤩

Our team is expanding! 🏆🥳

Welcome to the team Abdul! 👋 We are delighted to announce that at the start of the year we welcomed Abdul to the AyoDeks Moringa Team 🌿 With the expansion of the AyoDeks Moringa Site in Songo, we needed a second pair of hands to help John.

Abdul is a family-man from Songo with 10 years’ farming experience 🌱 A hard-worker and friendly person, together with John they make an unstoppable team 👊 John has even said Abdul is a harder worker than him which is saying something in itself considering John's work ethic and the amazing work he has done to date 😮

We look forward to building our positive relationship with Abdul as our AyoDeks Moringa family continues to grow 💚

Our collaboration with the Salesians of Don Bosco ⛪

As you’ll have seen from our recent video, we went on a mission to find the Moringa Processing Facility in Bo. Set up by the Salesians of Don Bosco, the project had not achieved its intended success due to the greed of certain community members, leading to its underutilisation 🌱

At present, the facility serves a handful of farmers who bring small quantities of Moringa to be processed 🌿 Moringa is washed and dried at the site using solar power in a process that can take up to two full days in rainy season.

The plan is for our Moringa to be processed at the facility working in collaboration with the Salesians of Don Bosco. The facility is a key asset for the future of AyoDeks Moringa 🌟

Update… what update? – Part 2 🤣 You can't write it!

Following on from last week, it’s a similar story for our trade licence application. The process of getting our trade licence seemed straightforward during our time in Sierra Leone 🇸🇱 We were advised to write a small business proposal to the Ministry of Trade, the Ministry would then send someone to inspect the site, write a report, and bingo… trade licence 🎊🌟 The reality has been far from straightforward.

First the business proposal was too long, they tell us they now want a page. We shorten the business proposal to a page, they tell us they now want half a page. We give them half a page, they lose the paperwork 🤷‍♂️🤷‍♂️

Our Logistics Coordinator Iscar has been back and forth to the Youyi Building so many times. She truly has the patience of a saint, and we are grateful for the effort she is making to get this sorted 🫶 We hope to get our trade licence soon 🤞

A word of warning from our experience, don’t expect efficiency or the Western standard of work for legal documentation in Sierra Leone ❌ If you need anything doing, have a bag of cash spare to get things done with any sense of urgency 😅

Update… what update? 🤷🏾‍♂️

Back in June we went through the painstaking task of walking round our Moringa sites in the sweltering heat for 3 hours to ensure the surveyor had what he needed to draft the land paperwork 🥲 And well, 4 months on… we are still without our paperwork 🧐

Trying to run a business in Sierra Leone is very difficult. Once people have their money, that’s it 💰 The surveyor has incorrectly marked out the land on multiple occasions. Much of the land had been marked out by a surveyor Tom hired nearly 2 years ago, so this is really quite a simple task 🤨 Luckily, we had an agreement to make part payment at the beginning and then the rest when the work is done correctly.

The surveyor is being extremely difficult and refusing to correct his errors. We continue to persevere; we hope to get through to the surveyor and have our paperwork completed correctly 🙏🏾

A word of warning from our experience, don’t expect the Western standard of work for legal documentation in Sierra Leone 🌍 Money talks. Never pay in full for any service until you are satisfied with what you have received 👊🏾 We will keep pushing and will raise the issue higher to ensure we get what we paid for.

Our Farm Caretaker John working extremely hard at the AyoDeks Moringa site in Songo 🌍🌿

Taking care of the site is no mean feat but John takes it in his stride. He is an excellent worker, diligent and humble. We are very grateful to have John and for the care he gives to our plants 🌱

Swipe to see some photos of us working in Songo earlier this year. Sweaty 💦 Hot ☀️ Tired 💤 Us Westerners are not cut out for such manual work 😅

Business registration complete! 💥

To export Moringa from Sierra Leone, we knew that our first step was to register as a foreign company. This involved completing several sets of paperwork and providing the required documentation from the UK 🇬🇧

We are delighted to announce that our application to register as a foreign company was successful and we are now registered in Sierra Leone! 🌟👏 This was a big team effort with everyone involved at one stage or another.

Next up we look to secure our trade licence. The relevant paperwork has already been submitted and we now eagerly wait for the decision from the Ministry of Trade. We hope to report good news soon! 🤞

Say hello to our new Farm Caretaker, John! 👋

John is a family man with a can-do attitude. The work he has done in the short time he has been with us so far has been phenomenal. He has transformed the land and made our vision come to life 🌟

The area around each plant is well kept and he is taking excellent care of the land. He has even started clearing further into the land in readiness for the next stage of planting. His work ethic is something to be admired. He possesses the qualities we look for at AyoDeks Limited and can’t wait to continue working together for a brighter future 🌈

We are delighted to have John on board 🤩

Phase 5: Gaining the support and trust of the local community 👫

During our trips to Songo, many people were curious about our activities 🧐 Our presence in the area attracted attention and we were keen to spread the AyoDeks message 🌿 The atmosphere was friendly and supportive, with many excited at what this new venture will bring to the village 👍

Thomas is pictured with the village leader Mr Masorieyonh 👑 Gaining the support of the village leader was key as he holds great power within the local community. We are pleased to say that he is highly supportive and appreciates what we are trying to do for his village 🙌

Our trips to Songo were made successful by a number of extraordinary people 👬🌟

In the top photo, Ibrahim is joined by local freelancers who assisted us during the clearing and planting process 🌿 With their help, we were able to move quickly as a team. The group were positive and hardworking, we know we can depend upon them in the future as the company develops in Sierra Leone 🌍 Our vision is to provide employment opportunities for the people of Songo to help them gain vital income to purchase provisions for their families. Songo is located in a rural area where job opportunities are almost zero. This extra income will go a long way 👨‍👩‍👧‍👦

In the bottom left photo, Thomas is joined by his Uncle Cecil. Uncle Cecil has been instrumental to getting AyoDeks Moringa off the ground. Based close to the site and acting as a middleman, he provides regular updates and brings opportunity for the people of Songo and AyoDeks Ltd. We are grateful for his continued help and support 🙏

In the bottom right photo, Thomas is joined by Mr Blanchard Davis, a local farmer with expert knowledge and wisdom of Moringa farming 🌱 Many of the seeds we planted were purchased from him. He provided money can’t buy advice and expertise during our trip and continues to be a source of guidance for Ibrahim 👍