18 Feb 2013

Back in the days, every young person cherished the dream of having a stable job. Setting out each morning for their place of work was some sort of achievement on its own.

The need to buy this and that at month-end was simply an icing on the cake. It felt good to finally spend their hard earned monthly salaries on their needs and wants.

Fast track the time to today and the tide seems to be turning somewhat.  The ever-rising levels of unemployment cannot be divorced from the status quo.

However, more and more youths, some out of desperation, and others because of sheer passion are choosing a path not treaded by multitudes before. They would rather be out there toiling for themselves, not for somebody else like everybody else who has come before them has always done.

Before the leap into the unknown, some and rightly so, take great pains to prepare. They educate themselves, adopt the right outlook and attitude, and knock on every door to familiarise themselves with the requirements of the journey ahead.

They fear being caught by situations unawares and such individuals, at the end of the day, seem to enjoy good returns for their efforts.

Another group however, does the exact opposite. Excited and anxious to break even, they leap headlong without having fully assessed the possible risks.

When the storm gathers, and the ensuing hailstorm pelts them hard, they look around in an effort to find a scapegoat to blame for the hard knocks life is dealing them.

This is the story of many youth businesses in the country. Some clearly are well-thought through. Others however, are birthed from the excitement engendered by the availability of government youth funding.

Every business undoubtedly has its own ups and downs; and it is the ‘downs’ that test the entrepreneur’s mettle. 

They sort of scan him/her; check if they have what it takes to wither the storm and when the storm abates, the one with the right acumen emerges, shining brightly like never before.

The other, on the one hand, is simply none existent, having been broken asunder, their pieces ejected by the raging waters and almost impossible to glue together again.

In the North East District, Mr Gosego Phuthego of Makaleng only alternative was venturing into business. Having tasted the world of work before, he realised that trading hours for money did not produce any lasting satisfaction.

While in one of the jobs he had been fortunate to land, he decided to make well on his dream, and thus set aside time to work on his business plan.

He knew the world of entrepreneurship could be brutal, especially if you waded into it unprepared, so he went all out to ensure he was as prepared as he could be.

For him, engaging consultants was a sign of timidity. So, as a first step he drafted his business plan, and thereafter worked on it until it took the shape he loved.

His dream had always been to own and successfully run a hardware and building materials store, and disillusioned by the meager amount that his salary with his last employer was, he quit in 2010 to follow his heart.

Without any waste of time, Mr Phuthego got in touch with the Department of Youth and Culture in Masunga and applied for funding.

Tedious as the whole process turned out to be for him, he would not let the circumstances force his business on its knees even before it could start.

While waiting for funding to be released, he chose not to sit back despondently, but sought a place he would operate from, and his prayers were answered in January 2012 when he finally managed to secure the place. That in no way marked the end of his struggles.

That was a whole eight months before he could get the funding he needed. Between then and the month of August 2012, when his business finally stated to operate, he had to depend on piece-jobs to raise the P1 000 that he had to pay as rent every month.

It was without doubt a tough task, but his determination and resilience saw him through. He got his P86 000 funding and as fate would have it, he had under-budgeted.

The state of the building he had rented worsened the already unpleasant situation as it needed a lot of renovating.

It would emerge later that transport costs to ferry stock from Francistown to Makaleng were also a detriment; and having not included such costs in his initial budget, his was an uphill struggle.

Through all these, he did not despair, and although the profits are only trickling in now, he knows that one day, he will be able to break even.

In yet another North East district village of Mulambakwena, Mr Ronald Majaha, also youth-funded, has his own share of ups and downs to narrate.

Unlike Mr Phuthego, the 31 year-old Mr Majaha has never known the world of work. After completing his Diploma in Security Management at Damelin College in 2006, he decided to help at his parents’ business.

While helping out at the shop, an idea to start his own business struck him, and as it is often said, the rest is history.

During its infancy stages, Mr Majaha’s poultry business was doing relatively well. He had sought of struck gold, having entered into an agreement with a certain chain store to supply it with chickens.

His joy was however short-lived as after a year, his business’s relationship with the store turned sour. It was at this point in time that he hit a serious low, so serious that he had to close shop for a while to re-assess the situation.

The introspection revealed to him that he would for quite some time grapple with the issue of market availability.

As of now, he only depends on individual buyers who are not as reliable as the chain store he had earlier been working with. Every now and then, he has to temporarily close to allow the stock he has placed at his parents’ shop to sell out.

This, he does, so he can be able to raise a bit of money to be able to buy chicken feed for his next batch of chickens.

Mr Majaha blames the Department of Youth and Culture for the fracas. Had he been funded to the tune of at least P87 000 he would be better off.

He reckons the P37 000 funding he got was insufficient and had he known beforehand that he would get such a measly amount, he would not have accepted the funding.

Despondent as he is, Mr Majaha is doing all in his power to pay off his loan, and presently he is left with a debt balance of around P7 000.

The Masunga based Youth Officer Ms Kelatlhegile Chilisa, unravels the parable of the youth-funded businesses in the district.

In her view, the process of getting funding is not as complicated as the youth allege. The guidelines are as clear as to breed no confusion as to what is required of young people desiring to secure funding, she noted.

On allegations of under-funding, Ms Chilisa believes the youth should see the funding as a starting point, hence the emphasis on the fact that they should work towards graduating and giving others the opportunity to also benefit.

Thus, she reckons, young people ought to be appreciative of the push government is giving them in the bid to create jobs for themselves and other youths.

As for the two youths interviewed, she said none was under-funded as both were given the exact amount of money they had requested.

She agrees that Ms Majaha is one of the most consistent in repaying his loan, and for this, she commends him.

Some youths clearly possess what it takes to push through despite any obstacles that may present themselves along the way.

For those who seem to want to give up at the mere sight of challenges, maybe a little bit of support in whatever form from parents, private sector and society in general can do a whole world of good to prevent their businesses from going under the hammer and forever remain engraved in the book of failures. ENDS