Visiting the Battalion of Combat Engineers N°8 Francisco Javier Cisneros, is to encounter the architecture of the coffee culture itself; colorful constructions that evoke the houses of the municipalities of the Coffee Axis.
Men and women of this military Unit conduct tasks that are aimed at security, respond to the call of the people and help governance to meet vulnerabilities in roads and construction and attend emergencies caused by natural events.
In the midst of their mission, they in the same way seek to support Quindian agriculture, align themselves even more with the coffee culture, landscaping and teach the soldiers the importance of continuing the coffee economy in the region.
One way to fulfill these purposes is through an alliance with the National Federation of Coffee Growers in Quindío, an institution that undoubtedly supported the Battalion's initiative by providing them with 2,400 coffee plants and instruction in the process of planting, caring for and harvesting a quality bean.
Lieutenant Colonel Luis Alberto Reales Triana, commander of the Cisneros Battalion, announces this project: "seeing the vulnerable workforce that coffee farmers have and taking advantage of the personnel who serve their military service at the Combat Engineer Battalion N°8, they are taught about coffee cultivation, so that, tomorrow, these young people will have a tool for them to work within this part of agriculture."
For his part, Sergeant Major of the Cisneros Battalion, Pablo Emilio Tamayo Higuita, who in addition to being a non-commissioned officer more than 25 years ago, since childhood, learned to work the land and knows about coffee farming, and since they started this initiative, he has specialized in transmitting his knowledge and love for the countryside to the soldiers who serve the military service.
Sergeant Major Tamayo points out that, thanks to teamwork, 2,400 coffee plants have already been planted throughout the Battalion and the soldiers are in charge of taking care of them: "This way, they have understood the importance of agriculture, of planting and reproducing coffee and have fallen in love with the product that represents the region." This is a way for young people to meet the countryside, because coffee is the basis for Quindío to have economic momentum today,” the non-commissioned officer said.
In the future, when the harvest arrives, the Cisneros Battalion will have a coffee certificate and thus, this project will be sustainable over time, so that many contingents of soldiers can obtain the instruction and certification by the Federation of Coffee Growers.
In this military Unit, they are proud to be the first Battalion at the national level with the initiative to carry out a coffee plantation, through a coordinated operation with other institutions.
With the execution of this work, the human quality of the soldier is strengthened, he is taught to work the land with love, Quindian agriculture is supported, the conservation of the young workforce and the protection of the environment are promoted.
This is how the Chitiva soldier, a young man from Pereira, Risaralda, who serves his military service, mentions: "The only thing I knew about coffee before I joined the Battalion was to buy it and drink it at home, but here, I received the instruction and I was passionate about the cultivation process and the economy it moves. In addition, I am certified by the Coffee Growers Federation and in the future I want to establish my own business and create my own coffee brand."
Lieutenant Colonel Reales, commander of the Cisneros Battalion, invites the young people to serve in his Unit, and thus, they will learn about the specialties of military engineers and will have access to complementary instruction on the coffee process.
Source: Press - Fifth Division
