There’s a district in Western Uganda with over 1000 farmers with over a billion dollars worth of a cash crop sitting in their gardens. So why aren’t they all millionaires? Project Diaspora looks into the difficulties this particular sector of African farmers are getting the raw end of the deal on the international market.

Over the next few months, PD will look into the reasons why these small-holder aloe vera farmers are having a difficult time getting their product to market.

How does this impact you?
Aloe vera is a “do-it-all” ingredient in many medicinal, beauty, and “natural healing” health products. Most of you have used a product based on aloe vera. These farmers are now stranded with nearly a $1 billion worth of product with no way to extract, process or market it internationally. The aloe vera industry is a very protected and insulated industry. According to one industry insider, this industry will literally “eat it’s young, it’s worse than the mafia.” With all the insulation going on, it’s understandable why African new-comers are going to have a difficult time getting an invitation to the party. The aloe vera industry is heavily protected by patents and secrets. Trying to get anyone to help is almost always greeted as an invasion of privacy.

So this is a call to the blogosphere out there. If you are an aloe industry expert, trader, dealer, analyst, agricultural expert, or well-connected individual or organization that’s willing to help; please contact us. We are looking to hear from you on how to help these farmers find a buyers on the global market. We are open-sourcing this project, because we believe there is a solution out there. PD runs more on volunteered time and heart than deep pockets, so any assistance in helping the word out on these farmers’ plight will be greatly appreciated.

Any information and/or assistance provided will be shared transparently in the comments section. We’ll do our part in providing as much information as needed.

Part 1: The Overiew
Part 1 is a general overview of what will be discussed in this multi-part report. Check this space as updates are made.

Part 2: An Open Letter to Hajji Ali Sessanga
Project Diaspora sends an open letter to the director of Uganda Commercial Aloe Vera Grower’s Association requesting answers to some very tough questions.

Part 3: Identifying the need
Project Diaspora looks into the difficult steps that will need to be taken in order for these farmers to get their product to the global market place.