Francisca Paola Paulino INFOTEP FACILITATOR
Work as a Hobby T
eaching others the rolling techniques to finish an artisanal cigar, as well as the construction of the bunch –its inner core– is a true pleasure for Francisca Paola Paulino. She is a facilitator for the National Institute of Technical Professional Vocational Training (Infotep) at the Tobacco School recently established in Tamboril, in partnership with the Association of Dominican Cigar Manufacturers (Procigar). She was born in Villa González –the land where, they say, the finest tobacco is grown– and moved to Tamboril, the industrial hub that crafts artisanal cigars ranked among the best in the world, which together represent one of the country’s primary exports.
HLG
76
Francisca shares that she has always been involved with tobacco. Her father was a grower, and from a young age, she was in the fields witnessing processes that have changed over time. “Now they are curing barns, but before they were just ranchos (shacks), and I loved going inside when the tobacco was ripe because I love the scent it releases.”