“Looking back now, that’s the best decision I’ve ever made,” reflects Khaalid Ahmed Awali (Class of 2018, Somaliland) on his decision to study at EARTH University. Khaalid, a Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program Alumni, first learned about EARTH from his headmaster at Abaarso School. He told him he had found a school that would fit Khaalid perfectly. Looking at the University’s website, Khaalid thought, “That’s where I’m going to go.” Thanks to the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program, Khaalid began a journey which impacted his life in ways he never imagined.
Having already learned a new language during secondary school, Khaalid was excited by the challenge of learning Spanish and diving headfirst into EARTH’s Agricultural Sciences degree. As a person typically bored by solely lecture-style learning, Khaalid appreciated the learning-by-doing and practical elements of EARTH’s educational model. Khaalid was also intrigued by the immersive entrepreneurship courses EARTH offered, and he could see himself incorporating the skills that he learned in the classroom to agricultural projects in Somaliland. The opportunity to study agriculture through hands-on, well-rounded learning experiences helped Khaalid to envision how his EARTH education would shape the agricultural landscape in his home country after graduating.
In immersing himself in his coursework at EARTH, Khaalid realized that there was a lot he didn’t know. Nonetheless, instead of fearing the unknown he learned to jump in headfirst and “just start,” a mindset that he has carried over into his professional life. One of the first courses Khaalid took at EARTH was Operation of Agricultural Equipment, where he and other students learned how to drive a tractor. Having never driven any vehicle in his life, Khaalid faced the new opportunity head-on, stepping up to the challenge rather than shying away from it. Learning how to drive on one of his first days of class at EARTH is representative of how he approached the remainder of his time at the University, and how he continues to manage challenges in the professional world.
Following his graduation from EARTH, in January of 2020 Khaalid began working with ClearSky Power, a solar company based in Somaliland. He began as a solar installer and eventually became a shareholder and senior engineer in the company. Having taken a few courses related to sustainable energy production at EARTH, Khaalid grew his knowledge of the solar energy industry through his work and saw the impact that renewable energy solutions had on rural communities.
Eventually he felt drawn back towards agriculture, with the goal of building something that changed how farmers lived and worked. While working at ClearSky Power, Khaalid co-founded his own farm, Ruman Farms, and he recently began dedicating himself full time to the farm and to RumAgro, the agri-tech company he co-founded. What started as a company that leased tractors to neighboring farmers now seeks to make farm work faster, simpler, and more reliable by providing mechanization services, irrigation and greenhouse support, and field coaching. Over time, they’ve developed an application that enables smallholder farmers to sell their products directly to consumers. By cutting out the middleman in sales, the app makes it cheaper and easier to do business. Ruman Farms also produces some of their own crops, primarily tomatoes, green peppers, and hot peppers, along with a few sub crops sold to neighboring markets. Launching Ruman Farms and RumAgro has enabled Khaalid to merge technological and agricultural solutions to directly support farmers in his community.
Looking towards the future, Khaalid is inspired to “go big” with technology and the mechanization of agriculture in his country of Somaliland. He hopes to dive further into agricultural business and wants to go beyond producing food to equipping farmers with the best mechanics and technology they can access to start producing at a higher level. Through his current work, he has already started training farmers in rural innovation practices–including integrated pest management, reproduction models, and escaping bottlenecks to improve sales. Working hand-in-hand with farmers and directly in agricultural production, Khaalid understands the challenges his community faces and seeks to continue to apply technological innovation to create sustainable solutions.
Khaalid is very grateful to Mastercard Foundation for the opportunity to study at EARTH. Everything he does today and has done since graduating stems from the skills and knowledge he acquired at the University. He often tells his colleagues that there is so much one can do with an EARTH education: he also learned to be self-sufficient and entrepreneurial. He reflects that without support from the Mastercard Foundation, it would not have been possible to leave Somaliland, to go to Costa Rica and study, gain knowledge, meet people, and return to his home country and implement what he learned.