Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

AMICI PADRE ALDO ODV

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Special report — Ten months of commitment

From fragility to rebirth: a community that is changing its face

From June 2025 to April 2026, the Morijo mission reopened a hospital, restored a church, opened a home for young mothers and funded eleven microcredits. These pages collect documents, figures and testimonies.

The Morijo plateau, in the Samburu region of Kenya

The Morijo-Porrò plateau, over 2,000 metres above sea level, in the northern Rift Valley of Kenya.

All the building sites and interventions carried out in these months were made possible by the bequest of the late Mrs Brazzalotto and Mrs Boer and by the donations collected by the Association. The generosity of those who chose to leave something to the mission even after their own lives — together with the continued support of so many friends and donors — made every brick laid, every roof repaired and every fence erected a reality.

These ten months show that, even with limited resources but with great determination and community spirit, it is possible to build something truly meaningful. Every structure recovered, every life welcomed, every patient treated is a concrete sign of hope for an entire community.

The projects in numbers

10

Months of activity

5

Structures redeveloped

1

Hospital reactivated

1

Church restored

2

Warehouses converted

1

Permanent nurse in service

«Every man is a ray of God»

Father Aldo — The voice of Father Aldo

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section I — Promoting body

Amici Padre Aldo ODV

Volunteer organisation registered in the Italian National Single Register of the Third Sector, operating in continuity with over twenty years of presence alongside the Morijo mission.

Statutory profile

The volunteer association Amici Padre Aldo, in compliance with Law 117 of 2017 on the reform of the Third Sector, was re-established with a deed of incorporation and new statute on 15 May 2021 and was registered as an ODV (volunteer organisation) with the Revenue Agency and the Registry Office on 6 June 2021.

Since 22 December 2022 the association has been registered in the RUNTS — the national single register of the third sector — as Amici Padre Aldo ODV.

The Association operates in continuity with the earlier experiences of Amici di Padre Aldo Onlus (2001–2018) and Progetto Amici Padre Aldo ETS (2018–2022), keeping its original purpose unchanged: to support the Morijo-Porrò mission, in the Samburu district, through interventions in education, healthcare, local economic development and the promotion of peace among communities.

Bodies and composition

Founding members
Bandiera Maurizio, Cappelletto Christian, D'Acquisto Mariarosa, Gnocato Matteo, Vettori Efrem, Vettori Giancarlo, Zorzi Ada
President
Giancarlo Vettori
Vice President
Maurizio Bandiera
Secretary
Ada Zorzi
Board members
Christian Cappelletto, Mariarosa D'Acquisto, Augusta D'Acquisto, Franco Deotti
Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section II — Study of the territory

Morijo-Porrò: the mission, the history, the people

The mission founded by Father Aldo includes Morijo, the largest village, and the small centres of Porrò, Partuk, Lkeek-sapuk, Marti, Nkorika, Malasso, Seppei and Losuk. It is currently led by Father Peter.

Father Aldo Vettori, founder of the mission

Father Aldo Vettori, originally from Treviso, was for decades a missionary in northern Kenya and is the founder of the Morijo-Porrò mission. He was one of the founders of the Morijo parish, established in 1987 in the Diocese of Maralal, and was its longest-serving parish priest. Those who knew him remember his serenity, energy and determination to improve people's living conditions: a much-loved point of reference.

Among his works: the network of schools — nursery and primary — in Morijo and the neighbouring villages; the dispensary, which provides care, prevention and vaccinations; drinking water with the Morijo well; the carpentry workshop, the textile workshop and the mechanical workshop, now run by trained local staff. But the commitment that marked him most was the one for peace among the peoples of the region, told below.

Read the page dedicated to Father Aldo Vettori →

Geography and climate

The Morijo-Porrò mission is located on a plateau over 2,000 metres above sea level (Morijo 2,070, Porrò 2,450), in the northern region of Kenya — Rift Valley Province, Samburu District, Diocese of Maralal — about 40 km from Maralal and 200 km from Lake Turkana.

A dry, healthy wind makes the climate mild in all seasons, with average annual temperatures from 15° at night to 25° during the day. Communication routes are not easy: the dirt roads often become impassable during the rainy season, between March and May, and can only be travelled by off-road vehicles.

Economy

The main economic activity remains the traditional raising of livestock — cows, camels, goats and sheep — while agriculture is mostly subsistence-based. The government encourages settled life by dividing the land into group ranch, farming communities ranging from 8 to 10 km², granted in usufruct to groups of about 300 families.

Management is entrusted to a committee of elders, who set the terms for the use of grazing land and reserve part of the territory for public-utility services: dispensaries, schools, shops. Even the luckiest families can hardly afford to sell more than two or three cows a year, an income often insufficient to support large households.

School situation

The Kenyan school system provides, besides kindergarten, two levels of study before university: the primary, corresponding to our elementary and middle school, and the secondary. The mission is responsible for 15 nurseries — one for each community — and 9 primary schools: it provides for the construction of the buildings, and for the pupils' food, uniforms and school supplies.

At times there are no rooms in which to hold lessons: in three nurseries the children are forced to stay outdoors. Where they exist, the buildings are often dilapidated, built many years ago with perishable materials such as wood and mud. Classrooms are crowded — the Morijo primary school has more than 250 pupils and only 8 teachers — and rarely have blackboards and desks.

Population, water and services

The mission serves a very large territory, about 1,600 km², which has considerable human resources. The Samburu people are proud to take responsibility for carrying out any project useful to the community: for this reason the Morijo Community Dispensarywas established, a committee made up of representatives of the sixteen communities of the area, which manages the drinking-water well, the dispensary and the transport of materials and animals.

No less important is the problem of drinking water: Morijo has it thanks to a well dug in 1998, but this fundamental resource must be supplied to all the communities, drastically reducing the risk of numerous diseases. If much has been done, much remains to be done: education and public health require immediate and effective action.

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section II bis — The founder

The Visionary Founder, Father Aldo Vettori

The missionary who dedicated his life to the Samburu people: biographical reconstruction, missionary work and social achievements in Morijo and the surrounding villages.

Who Father Aldo was

Father Aldo Vettori, founder of the Morijo mission
Father Aldo Vettori (Treviso – 2008), founder of the Morijo mission.

Father Aldo Vettori, a missionary priest originally from Treviso, dedicated much of his life to the peoples of northern Kenya, in particular the Samburu. He never limited himself to religious activity: he organised building sites, sought solutions to the lack of water, promoted education and built the essential infrastructure for people's lives.

Those who knew him remember him as a serene, tireless man, determined to improve the conditions of those around him. His was a daily presence, alongside people, in the concrete problems of every day.

The missionary journey

It all begins in Barsaloi, in the heart of Samburu territory, where in 1973 he founded and organised the mission. At the end of the 1980s he moved to Morijo and began building a new mission from scratch, which would become his home for the rest of his life.

Alongside pastoral work he devoted himself to training catechists and organising the parish community, entrusting local people with ever greater responsibility, so that activities could continue over time even without him. From this, one after another, came the works that today make Morijo a point of reference for the whole territory.

The gallery

Portrait of Father Aldo Vettori
Father Aldo Vettori, portrait.
Father Aldo seated among the community, with adults and children clapping their hands
Father Aldo with the community during a gathering.
Father Aldo among the children in uniform in front of the school buildings
Father Aldo among the children, in front of the school buildings.

Water: the great work of Morijo

Morijo stands at about 2,000 metres of altitude and water has always been the most serious problem: its scarcity affected daily life, hygiene, health and the very possibility of sustaining a stable community. Father Aldo sought a solution that made use of what the place offered.

He had the side of a hill levelled, the surface laid out and paved, and the area surrounded by a wall, so as to collect rainwater and channel it into a large cistern. Seen from afar, the whole looked like a medieval castle: not a simple tank, but a system designed around the shape of the land to preserve a precious resource in a difficult environment.

The rain, however, was not enough in the dry months. He therefore identified an aquifer in a small valley and had a well dug 140 metres deep, from which a motor pumped the water up to the mission's tank. Rainwater and groundwater complemented each other.

He did not stop at the mission. With the "amphora project" he helped the most isolated families build small tanks to collect water from the corrugated-iron roofs of their homes: instead of concentrating the whole resource in a single place, he wanted even the most distant to be able to keep a reserve, independently.

Schools, health and work

In Morijo the mission has become a true service centre. There is a school and a kindergarten, because the education of Samburu children has always been at the heart of his commitment, with the kitchen and the teachers' housing supporting its operation. There is the dispensary, which brings healthcare to a population used to enormous distances and difficult roads. There are a sewing and tailoring workshop, which offers practical training, a carpentry workshop and a garage for vehicle maintenance.

Around these works there was always an open building site. Father Aldo followed the work in person, also taking care of how to pay for labour and materials, even negotiating with the government over the maize promised to settle the works in progress.

Attentive to the most immediate needs, he bought milk, honey, firewood and charcoal from those who brought them to the mission and resold them to poor families at a price lower than what he had paid. For many women, and for the whole community, he was the person to turn to with every kind of problem.

The roads and the "Road of Peace"

Father Aldo worked to create dignified living conditions even outside the mission, building aqueducts, roads and essential facilities throughout the territory. One of these roads bears a name that says it all: the "Road of Peace".

It was designed to bring the communities of the region closer together and reduce the isolation of the villages. Its usefulness was seen on a day of violence: after an armed attack, an injured girl was carried along that very road to the mission, and from there taken to hospital to receive treatment. A concrete connection and, at the same time, a symbol of the coexistence that Father Aldo tried to build throughout his life.

Peace as the purpose of a life

If the schools, the dispensary and the workshops changed daily life in Morijo, it is in peace that Father Aldo invested the best of himself. The mission's territory, on the border between pastoral peoples — Samburu, Turkana and Pokot — is marked by centuries of tribal history and armed conflict. For him, building peace in Kenya was the purpose of his life.

«I told the elders: peace is in your hands, you are the masters of peace. I too have a programme: to help you make peace.»

His method began with listening and respect. He did not bring solutions from outside: he recognised the community elders as the true guardians of peace, because they know the customs and the way things interweave over time. For this reason the first step was always dialogue with them, through meetings and seminars that brought representatives of different peoples to the same table. Every people, he repeated, has its own religion, its own traditions, a wisdom that no one can destroy: one must learn from every culture.

Alongside the meetings among the elders, peace came through simple, concrete gestures:

  • children, let play together, because those who grow up sharing a playing field learn not to see an enemy in the other;
  • adults, encouraged to exchange goods and products, because trade creates common interests and relationships of trust;
  • education, as a way to help the new generations grow together;
  • sport, with the annual Heroes' Cup tournament, which every December brings together teams from the different peoples.

In the last years of his life he served the pastoral communities of the Pokot, Samburu and Turkana, preaching peace and love. His conviction, summed up in the motto "Every man is a ray of God", expresses the belief that every person carries something divine within, beyond belonging to a people.

His legacy is alive today: the MIPPP programme continues to promote peace seminars among the three communities and the Heroes' Cup tournament. On the 2026 trip the Association accompanied the Peace Olympics: a day of sport and song that brought together young people, families, authorities and political and religious representatives of the different groups. It is the same spirit as Father Aldo's: to create occasions in which people learn to respect one another and discover they can rejoice together. The trust that arises in this way is often the first step of every change.

The voice of Father Aldo

«Every man is a ray of God»

«I told the elders: peace is in your hands, you are the masters of peace because you know the blessing of God when you work for peace. You know the customs, you know how things are continually interwoven, and you must discover what needs to be done. I too have a programme: to help you make peace.»

«Every people has its own religion, its own traditions, a divine wisdom that no one can destroy. One must always learn from a culture, from a tribe, and welcome what they too have received. As a Christian I must discover the human being: how he has lived, how he has overcome difficulties, with whose strength. This is the mission.»

A legacy that continues

The thread that unites all his works is the search for more dignified living conditions for a people facing environmental, economic and social difficulties. The water collected from the rains, the school, the dispensary, the roads: everything arose from a concrete problem and from equally concrete work.

His legacy, however, is not made only of structures. It is work with people, the organisation of the community and the will to create links where there used to be isolation and hardship. It is what the Amici Padre Aldo Association continues to safeguard and carry forward in Morijo.

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section III — Field report

Ten months of interventions: structures, healthcare, community

Account of the works carried out in Morijo and in the villages of the parish between June 2025 and April 2026, funded by the Brazzalotto and Boer bequests and by the Association's donations.

10

Months of activity

5

Structures redeveloped

1

Hospital reactivated

1

Church restored

2

Warehouses converted

1

Permanent nurse in service

01

Welcome

The home that gives young mothers back a future

A refuge against abandonment and poverty, where hope is rebuilt every day.

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

The new welcome home, front view
The new welcome home, front view
The welcome home, side view
The welcome home, side view

During these months of work, a home dedicated to welcoming young mothers, often very young, coming from contexts of great fragility, was set up and gradually developed. Many of them come from situations marked by family abandonment, social marginalisation and extreme poverty, with no stable point of reference to count on.

Today the home is not just a structure, but a true place of rebirth. Through everyday life made of small gestures — cooking together, caring for their children, sharing difficulties — a family atmosphere is created that helps them regain trust.

The building also hosts Italian volunteers and people in emergency situations, becoming a precious resource for the whole local community.

«A true place of rebirth: not just a roof, but listening and a future for those who had nothing.»
02

Restoration

The Nkireny church rises from the rubble

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

The Nkireny church after restoration
The Nkireny church after restoration
Detail of the reinforced walls
Detail of the reinforced walls

The roof, badly damaged, was at risk of collapsing. The walls had deteriorated. And yet the community never stopped regarding this place as fundamental: a symbol of faith, identity and unity.

Today the church is once again a living space, stronger and more meaningful than before.

  • Roof repaired and made safe
  • Walls reinforced and repaired
  • Rooms cleaned and tidied
03

Training

Old warehouses turned into dignified lodgings for seminarians and catechists

Two abandoned rooms become spaces for living, study and community for those who guide the territory spiritually.

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

The redeveloped lodgings for seminarians and catechists
The redeveloped lodgings for seminarians and catechists

Over these months an important renovation of the lodgings intended for seminarians and catechists was carried out, figures essential to the religious and social life of the community. Previously the rooms were overcrowded and there were no areas for study.

Two old abandoned warehouses were recovered and transformed thanks to demanding work carried out in several phases: cleaning, structural reinforcement, adaptation of the spaces and reorganisation of the interiors.

The result: new dignified rooms where residents can rest, study and live in peace. The new organisation of the spaces helps strengthen community life and allows the catechists to work more effectively in the spiritual education of the population.

04

Healthcare

The dispensary fence: a small gesture, a great impact

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

The new gate and the dispensary fence
The new gate and the dispensary fence

One of the apparently simplest interventions proved to be among the most transformative: building the fence around the dispensary. Before, the area was completely open — animals and people entered freely, compromising hygiene and safety.

Today contamination is avoided, access is controlled, medicines and equipment are protected. A clear signal: health is a priority.

«Marking out the hospital's boundary means recognising its central role in the life of the community.»
05

Healthcare — Top story

Morijo hospital comes back to life: nurse Salim leads the rebirth

Inaccessible for years, the small health facility is today a beacon of hope for an entire area, thanks to the daily work of a dedicated professional and the continued support of the mission.

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

Morijo hospital operational again
Morijo hospital operational again
Nurse Salim during consultations
Nurse Salim during consultations
Patients waiting at the Morijo hospital
Patients waiting at the Morijo hospital

One of the most significant results achieved in these months was the recovery and reactivation of the small Morijo hospital, which had been inactive for a long time. Before the intervention there was no adequate equipment and no stable management — for many inhabitants this meant facing illness and emergencies with no medical point of reference nearby.

The work carried out has brought this facility back to life, above all thanks to the presence of nurse Salim, a human point of reference for the whole community. With a great sense of responsibility, he cares for patients every day, handling complex situations with limited means.

The hospital now also serves the neighbouring villages, becoming an essential facility for a very large area. The mission's support guarantees stability through the payment of his salary, the purchase of medicines and the continuous support made possible by donations.

06

Equipment

New machines for more accurate diagnoses and more effective treatment

By the Amici Padre Aldo ODV Editorial Team

Examination couch for the clinic
Examination couch for the clinic
Screens for patient privacy
Screens for patient privacy
Sterilizer for surgical instruments
Sterilizer for surgical instruments
Nasal cannulas for oxygen therapy
Nasal cannulas for oxygen therapy
Multiparameter monitor in use
Multiparameter monitor in use
New multiparameter monitor
New multiparameter monitor

Thanks to the generosity of the donations received, it was possible to purchase the first equipment: an examination couch, screens, a sterilizer, a multiparameter patient monitor and oxygen therapy supplies.

Among the next goals is the purchase of an ultrasound machine.

  • Examination couch for the clinic
  • Screens for patient privacy
  • Sterilizer for surgical instruments
  • Nasal cannulas for oxygen therapy
  • Multiparameter monitor

A note of gratitude

To all those who chose to leave something to the mission, and to all the donors who support it every year, goes the deepest gratitude of the Association and of the Morijo community.

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section IV — Local economic development

The funded microcredit projects

Eleven men and women of Morijo received a microcredit to start or strengthen their business. Each project is a story of determination and a concrete prospect for their family.

11

Loans granted

Ksh 450,000

Total capital

10 months

Length of repayment plans

Boniface Lesirite
01

Microcredit — Morijo

Boniface Lesirite

Purchase of sheep for breeding

Sheep are not only a source of milk for daily consumption, but also a valuable asset for breeding and for the growth of the small herd over time. Through the sale of milk and of some animals, Boniface will be able to generate a stable income and support his children's education.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Lucas Lekumato
02

Microcredit — Morijo

Lucas Lekumato

Purchase of sheep and land registration

The purchase of sheep starts an economic cycle based on the growth of the livestock; the official registration of the land ensures security, stability and the possibility of planning future investments.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Lucy Nashankai Lekiriao
03

Microcredit — Morijo

Lucy Nashankai Lekiriao

Purchase of sheep and land registration

Part of the funding officially registers the plot of land, obtaining a title deed. With the remainder, Lucy starts a small business raising and trading sheep.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Nabiki Lentumunai
04

Microcredit — Morijo

Nabiki Lentumunai

Raising dairy sheep and purchase of furniture

Two dairy sheep provide a direct source of nourishment; part of the loan buys essential furniture to make the home environment more dignified and functional.

Amount
Ksh 20,000
Repayment
Ksh 2,000/month × 10
Lelesiit Christine
05

Microcredit — Morijo

Lelesiit Christine

Goat farming, furniture and poultry farming

Dairy goats, a small poultry farm for selling eggs, and furniture for the home: a concrete example of income diversification.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Mary Milandi Lentumunai
06

Microcredit — Morijo

Mary Milandi Lentumunai

Buying and selling sheep

Initial purchase of a few animals, care, and subsequent resale at a higher price: a simple but effective model, repeatable by reinvesting the earnings.

Amount
Ksh 30,000
Repayment
Ksh 3,000/month × 10
Mary Suleiman Leseiya
07

Microcredit — Morijo

Mary Suleiman Leseiya

Purchase of sheep for a trading business

In this context livestock has significant economic and social value: buying and selling builds a stable source of income over time.

Amount
Ksh 40,000
Repayment
Ksh 4,000/month × 10
Wilson Lengasagile
08

Microcredit — Morijo

Wilson Lengasagile

Purchase of dairy sheep

Dairy sheep reduce the family's daily expenses and, as the animals reproduce, progressively grow the value of the herd.

Amount
Ksh 30,000
Repayment
Ksh 3,000/month × 10
Graciella Ntipanoi Lesiyempe
09

Microcredit — Morijo

Graciella Ntipanoi Lesiyempe

Sale of fruit and vegetables, mandazi, and completion of a bathroom

A diversified project that combines the sale of fruit and vegetables with the production of mandazi. Part of the funding also completes the construction of a bathroom, improving the family's hygiene conditions.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Saravina Letowon
10

Microcredit — Morijo

Saravina Letowon

Small retail business and purchase of land

The retail shop creates a continuous source of income through the sale of basic necessities; the purchase of land is an investment to build a home for the family.

Amount
Ksh 50,000
Repayment
Ksh 5,000/month × 10
Nankare Loserkat
11

Microcredit — Morijo

Nankare Loserkat

Dairy sheep and sale of mandazi

The purchase of dairy sheep reduces household expenses and guarantees nourishment; the daily production and sale of mandazi adds a second source of income.

Amount
Ksh 30,000
Repayment
Ksh 3,000/month × 10
Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section V — Open construction sites

Nkabai: a new church and a study room in the forest

About twenty kilometres from Morijo, a community of about a thousand people is rebuilding its place of prayer and gathering, and alongside it a space dedicated to the children's studies.

The place and the community

Nkabai is a village set in the forest, about 20 kilometres from Morijo, where roughly a thousand people live in conditions of great poverty. It is a remote place, where many things that seem taken for granted elsewhere require effort, time and resources: reaching a service, obtaining materials, finding a suitable space to meet or to study.

In a context like this, the church is not merely a place of worship. It is the place where the community prays, celebrates, gathers and recognises itself: a point of reference that holds together families scattered across the territory.

Why rebuild

The old Nkabai church was built entirely of wood and was consumed by termites. Over time the wood weakened until the solidity of the structure failed, and it was no longer able to host the community as it should.

The collapse of the building meant the loss of much more than a construction: of a space of prayer, gathering, celebration and belonging. For this reason construction of a new masonry church began, designed to last and to withstand what destroyed the previous one.

The project: a church and a study room

The work provides for two spaces joined in a single building: the community church and astudy room intended above all for the boys and girls of the herders' school, who spend much of their days looking after animals and who thus find a place where they can read, study and learn.

According to the project drawing, the building measures 23 metres in length by 8 in width, for a total area of 184 square metres:

  • the church, 15 × 8 metres (120 m²), with about 50 seats on benches, the altar and the lectern with the ark;
  • the study room, 8 × 8 metres (64 m²), with 20 seats for students, the teacher's table, the blackboard and a cupboard for materials.

The choice to join the two spaces answers a precise idea: the project speaks of faith, but also of the future. Next to the place where the community gathers, a permanent space for education is born, which can be used for study, even in the hours when the working day is over.

Project drawing: plan, exterior elevation and interiors of the church and study room of Nkabai
Illustrative image of the project: plan, exterior elevation and interiors of the church and study room (the labels on the drawing are in Swahili).

Progress of the works

The building site is open and construction is under way. The photographs document a transformation that happens one step at a time: the block walls rising, the plaster covering the interior walls, the sheet-metal roof taking shape above the building.

Each phase requires labour, materials and resources, and the completion of the work depends on the support that can be raised. The construction is not yet the point of arrival: it is a promise taking shape, one step at a time.

Block masonry of the new Nkabai church with scaffolding
The new structure takes shape
Interior of the building with plaster on the walls
Work inside the building
Laying the sheet-metal roof over the walls
Laying the roof
Side façade with the sheet-metal roof almost complete
The building site goes on

From the building site, on video

The building site in motion

Four short videos filmed in Nkabai document the progress of the works: from the masonry and plastering to the laying of the roof.

Inside the building site: walls, mortar and roof beams1:10
The roof structure takes shape0:11
Laying the roof sheets0:11
The sheet-metal roof and the exterior walls0:14

The next step: a well for Nkabai

Alongside the church and the study room there is another goal that the Association would like to turn into a concrete project: the construction of a well for the Nkabai community. Water could bring a profound improvement to the daily life of families, to hygiene, to health and to school activities.

Before starting any work it will be necessary to verify:

  • the technical feasibility of the intervention;
  • the presence and quality of the water resource underground;
  • the overall costs;
  • the conditions to guarantee maintenance and operation over time.

The Association does not intend to make easy promises: the aim is to build a serious, sustainable project shared with those who will take care of it. For now the well remains a goal to keep in front of us: after having begun to rebuild a place of gathering and study, the wish is to help make accessible also that without which daily life becomes a struggle.

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section VI — Monitoring tools

Four digital registers and a health portal: monitoring in order to intervene better

From paper to digital: a quiet revolution in Morijo. Five platforms collect data on education and health in the communities of Morijo, Ngorika, Angata, Marti and Soit Pus.

The digital education registers

Digital register of students adopted in 2026

Register I — Morijo Educational Programme

229 registered students: the official register of adoptees

The register records the status of all 229 students enrolled in the long-distance adoption programme: 186 with an active adopter, 33 who have completed the course, 10 inactive, 132 boys and 97 girls.

The tool allows local coordinators to update each student's status in real time, report dropouts or new enrolments, and give Italian sponsors always up-to-date information about the boy or girl they support.

229
Total
186
Active
33
Completed
10
Inactive
Digital register of classes and attendance

Register II — MIPPP Educational School Program

981 children and teenagers enrolled: Lchekuti and Nursery

The MIPPP register follows the classes of two programmes every day: the Lchekuti evening school for young herders (555 enrolled) and the Nurseries, the village kindergartens (426 enrolled). For each class it records the teacher, the village, the pupils and the lesson days actually held.

981
Enrolled
555
Lchekuti
426
Nursery

In depth — The Lchekuti and Nursery project

A school entirely paid for by long-distance adoptions

Teachers, teaching materials, classrooms, desks, meals: everything needed to run the Lchekuti and Nursery schools is 100% funded by the long-distance adoptions of Amici Padre Aldo ODV.

In Samburu many children never set foot in a school. The youngest stay at home because even kindergarten has to be paid for; the older ones, the lchekuti — in the Samburu language "the young herders" — spend the whole day in the pastures with the family's goats, sheep and camels. The MIPPP programme was created to reach both, without asking the families for a single shilling.

The Nurseries are the village kindergartens: morning classes in which the youngest children learn to read, write and count, receive a meal and are prepared for entry into primary school. Today there are 12 active classes with 426 children, plus a new Nursery at Lesoit Naibor about to start.

Lchekuti is the evening school for the young herders. On returning from the pastures, at sunset, the boys and girls find a hot meal and two hours of lessons: literacy, mathematics, English and Swahili. It is often the only education they receive. There are 19 classes with 555 students, some hosted in the Morijo Primary School.

What the adoptions pay for. With the long-distance adoption fees the Association pays the salaries of all the teachers (30 teachers), buys notebooks, pens, blackboards, books and chalk, builds and maintains the classrooms, supplies the desks and guarantees food. Without the adoptions, these schools would not exist.

Daily monitoring. The MIPPP digital register makes it possible to check in real time the attendance and lesson days of every class. In this way every euro donated is linked to a teacher, a class and real children, in six villages: Nkorika, Soit Pus, Angata/Nkirenyi, Marti, Morijo and Lesoit Naibor.

31

Active classes

19 Lchekuti and 12 Nursery, plus one starting up

31

Teachers paid

Salaries fully covered by adoptions

6

Villages

Nkorika, Soit Pus, Angata, Marti, Morijo, Lesoit Naibor

100%

Funded by adoptions

Teachers, materials, classrooms, desks, meals

Lchekuti — 555 students

TeacherVillagePupils
Moses LentiipoNkorika24
Simon LewaoNkorika15
Lemayian LentumunaiNkorika18
James LeseewaNkorika18
Matiba LetowonNkorika19
Paul LentumunaiSoit Pus25
Moses LesuyaiSoit Pus13
Julius LemetekiSoit Pus34
Selina LetoluaiSoit Pus28
Thomas LelerukAngata/Nkirenyi19
Charles LenaidamaaAngata/Nkirenyi24
Philip LemunenAngata/Nkirenyi35
Selina LetoluaiAngata/Nkirenyi40
Josephine AleperMarti29
Josephine LekeriaeMorijo60
Jullietta LekumatoMorijo45
Karoli Lwanga LewaoMorijo Primary School34
Gloria LesuyaiMorijo Primary School36
Justus Lobaru LekumatoMorijo Primary School39

Nursery — 426 students

TeacherVillagePupils
Raphael LepanaNkorika29
Dickson LemanteNkorika45
Michael LetipilaNkorika42
Daudi LelesiitNkorika20
Isaac LenkaakSoit Pus53
James LemeikariSoit Pus15
Moses LenolgisoiSoit Pus16
David LenkidiAngata/Nkirenyi20
Thomas LentiipoAngata/Nkirenyi54
Jacob LeleejukAngata/Nkirenyi36
John LekasuyianAngata/Nkirenyi37
Anyuni LentumunaiMorijo59
Lmanis Mark LekerkeroLesoit Naiborstarting up
«After a day of hard work in the pastures, the young herders receive a hot meal and two hours of school: no one is left behind.»

Kindergartens in the villages

The Association pays the teachers' salaries and guarantees the morning meal for kindergarten children in the villages of the parish.

Evening school for young herders

Every evening the young herders receive a hot meal and two hours of lessons with teachers paid by the Association, after a full day in the pastures.

Digital monitoring

The digital registers make it possible to track attendance, payments and progress of every student and teacher in real time, directly from the field.

Health portal — Morijo Health

The digital dispensary: monitoring health in order to intervene in a targeted way

A portal built for the Morijo dispensary: patients, diagnoses and the most widespread diseases are the data that guide the purchase of medicines and equipment.

Digital dashboard of Morijo Health patients

559 cases recorded in four villages: Morijo, Ngorika, Angata, Marti

The Morijo Health portal has by now recorded 559 clinical cases in total. By village, Morijo is the main centre with 440 cases, followed by Ngorika (78), Angata (40) and Marti (1), where data collection has only just begun.

440
Morijo
78
Ngorika
40
Angata
1
Marti

These data allow the Association and the local health staff — a nurse whose salary is paid by Amici Padre Aldo ODV — to plan interventions, distribute shifts and guarantee continuous coverage in the most remote villages.

Distribution of diseases by categoryThe ten most common diseases recorded

68 types of disease: the ten most common

The most widespread illness is acute upper respiratory tract infection, followed by acute pneumonia: conditions typical of an arid and semi-arid area like Samburu, linked to dust, cold nights and crowded housing. Infant vaccinations are also recorded in the portal.

  1. 1.Acute upper respiratory tract infections94 cases (16.8%)
  2. 2.Acute pneumonia50 cases (8.9%)
  3. 3.Tonsillitis27 cases (4.8%)
  4. 4.Skin infections23 cases (4.1%)
  5. 5.Acute urinary infections23 cases (4.1%)
  6. 6.10-week vaccination22 cases (3.9%)
  7. 7.Sexually transmitted infections17 cases (3.0%)
  8. 8.6-week vaccination17 cases (3.0%)
  9. 9.Pneumonia16 cases (2.9%)
  10. 10.Gastroenteritis16 cases (2.9%)

What donors fund through the health portal

The Morijo Health data directly guide spending decisions: the purchase of priority medicines — antibiotics for pneumonia and respiratory infections, antiparasitics, medicines for maternal and neonatal conditions — the payment of the nurse's salary and the gradual purchase of diagnostic equipment: stethoscopes, sphygmomanometers, glucometers, dressing materials.

Summary of digital tools

Five tools, one certainty: every euro donated is tracked

Registers I + II

229

Students monitored in the education registers, from kindergarten to university courses, including the young herders of the evening schools.

Health portal

559

Clinical cases recorded in 4 villages, with 68 types of disease documented.

Combined impact

5

Digital platforms active for education and health, custom-built for the communities of the parish.

Volunteer association · Morijo, Kenya

Projects, reports and documentation from the Morijo mission, Kenya

Section VII — Support

The projects of Amici Padre Aldo ODV

Social works, healthcare, education, economic development and digital tools: the list of initiatives documented in Morijo and in the villages of the parish.

Payments and donations

Banca Etica

IT85A0501812000000017075128

In the name of Amici Padre Aldo ODV

Banco Posta

IT54M0760112000001063844979

In the name of Amici Padre Aldo ODV

Postal current account

No. 1063844979

In the name of Amici Padre Aldo ODV

5 per mille

94170320264

Write this tax code on your income tax return to allocate the 5 per mille to Amici Padre Aldo ODV.

Note

Voluntary donations to Amici Padre Aldo ODV are deductible from 22 December 2022, the date of registration in the RUNTS.

For information: 0422 260629 · 320 0324745 · amicipadrealdoodv@gmail.com

Ongoing projects

Long-distance adoption project
01

Long-distance adoptions

The only real way to let everyone study: in Kenya even kindergarten has to be paid for. The programme guarantees education, uniforms, books and food without placing the cost on families.

Evening school of the Lchekuti project
02

"Lchekuti" project

Evening school for young herders (555 enrolled) and Nursery kindergartens in the villages (426 children): 981 pupils in 31 classes. The project is paid for entirely by long-distance adoptions, which cover teachers, teaching materials, classrooms, desks and meals.

Goats project for the families of Morijo
03

"Goats" project

Improving families' subsistence conditions by giving each one a goat. Just 12 euros buys a goat.

Microcredit project in Morijo
04

"Microcredit" project

Funds small agricultural and commercial initiatives in the Morijo community, with repayment plans over ten months.

Health activities of the Kitengela project
05

"Kitengela" project

Hygiene and health promotion, ophthalmic prevention and therapy, improvement of the dispensary's facilities.

Activities of the Art of Peace project
06

"Art of Peace" project

Strengthening the peace process among the Samburu, Turkana and Pokot tribes through shared cultural, sporting and recreational activities.

Photovoltaic system of the Morijo mission
07

Photovoltaic system

Installed at the Morijo mission: electricity benefits the entire community, from the dispensary to the schools.

Representative image of the ultrasound machine intended for the Morijo dispensary
Representative generated image; not an original photograph of the project.
08

Ultrasound machine for the dispensary

The next goal after the purchase of the examination couch, sterilizer, multiparameter monitor and oxygen therapy supplies. The image shown is representative and not an original photograph of the project.

Eleven microcredit projects

Loans totalling Ksh 430,000 intended for livestock farming, trade, land ownership and improvement of family conditions.

  1. 01Boniface Lesirite — breeding sheep
  2. 02Lucas Lekumato — sheep and land registration
  3. 03Lucy Nashankai Lekiriao — sheep and land registration
  4. 04Nabiki Lentumunai — dairy sheep and furniture
  5. 05Lelesiit Christine — goats, poultry farming and furniture
  6. 06Mary Milandi Lentumunai — buying and selling sheep
  7. 07Mary Suleiman Leseiya — sheep trading
  8. 08Wilson Lengasagile — dairy sheep
  9. 09Graciella Ntipanoi Lesiyempe — fruit, vegetables, mandazi and bathroom
  10. 10Saravina Letowon — shop and land purchase
  11. 11Nankare Loserkat — dairy sheep and mandazi

Digitalisation and transparency

Four digital education registers

Monitoring of 229 adopted students and of the 981 pupils of the Lchekuti and Nursery schools, with attendance and lesson days for each class.

Health portal of the dispensary

559 cases and 68 types of disease recorded to plan purchases of medicines and health interventions transparently.