Years ago he hawked clothes in Nairobi, he would walk from morning till late in the evening to earn just Sh200.
But after he married, the money was insufficient to feed the family and pay his rent.
Image: FILE
Unemployment is one of the major challenges most African countries are grappling with currently as the high cost living continues to shoot up.
Closer to home, the situation is even more dire as statistics show nearly one million Kenyan youths join the labour market each year out of whom only approximately 200, 000 get employed.
The government has tried coming up with numerous ways to curb the situation but many unemployed citizens say they are yet to see the fruits of government strategies.
To some, like Wilson Maina, a shoe maker in Ngara, the situation forced them to think outside the box for ways of earning an income in order to cater for their needs.
Years ago he hawked clothes in Nairobi, he would walk from morning till late in the evening to earn just Sh200, which was enough as he had no one else to cater for.
But after he married, the money was insufficient to feed the family and pay his rent. He made a decision of a lifetime to venture into another business.
“I started this business in 2005 with a capital of Sh100. Since I had a needle, I used the money to buy shoe cream and a shoe brush at Kariokor market where I buy my necessities,” he said.
On his first day in business he got only Sh5 for the entire day. Hunger made him buy a cob of roasted maize in the streets to make it back to Muthurua where he rented.
“The following day I made Sh70 and it really motivated me a lot,” Maina said.
He continued with the same routine until his customers increased in numbers, and now he is grateful he has a lot of them.
Maina has a wife and three children. “My children are all in school thanks to the business that provides me with my daily source of income that also enables me to pay my house rent of Sh3,000 in Githurai,” he stated.
“My wife, who is a farmer in Muranga, really supports my hustle and I must say that it is a motivation to me. The fact that some of my friends take me lightly, and they still don’t believe in me, is really disheartening but nonetheless I still focus on my ambitions”.
Maina operates in an open place where the weather is unpredictable. He says dealing with county officials who usually overtax them, and sometimes arrest him with his belongings, is some of the greatest challenges he faces in the business.
“On a good day I make up to Sh2000 and I have a strong feeling that one day I will own a big business,” he stated. He advices youths to stop taking alcohol to build themselves.