13 Apr 2016

When a misfortunate falls on us, we often ask ourselves  how we are going to survive after the ordeal.

There is always a plan on how to survive despite the challenges we face every day and with good support and passion to succeed, the recipe is a winning formula.

Mr Titus Bock is one youth who has been on bed rest for 10 months, after a car accident that left him with spinal injury and inability to walk anymore.  

Being a business person who used to move around freely doing business, he never imagined in his entire life of being wheelchair bound but he had to deal with the situation since 2010. Nevertheless he did not allow this disability to breed inability as he continued his printing business in Jwaneng.

It was not easy at first, he admits, but he has been able to press on and be a printing guru in the mining town of Jwaneng, thanks to Motor Vehicle Accident (MVA) fund which took him for training in South Africa to learn how to be independent.

The 33 year old lad from Kokotsha village started his printing business in 2003 after completing his Form V at Matsha College in Kang.

He started from his own pocket and funded the project that has been putting food on the table for him for the past 13 years.

“My services include t-shirt printing, car branding, sign board design, sportswear or kit designing, embroidery and secretarial services”, he explained in an interview with BOPA.

It all started at a humble beginning, with pieces of his artwork and craft that people started liking and he turned the passion into business.

He said he used to do t-shirt printing at junior and senior school and that has cultivated the spirit of entrepreneurship in him at a young age.

Mr Bock was excited to reveal that his proposal for funding by government through the Youth Development Fund (YDF) to a tune of P100 000 has been approved and the new equipment will help his business to grow and ultimately employ other youth.

He is currently enjoying the market from Jwaneng Town Council, companies especially those in the mine, individuals and government departments.

He is a business man at heart as he mentions that during his 10 months stay at the hospital he asked his family to bring some material so that he could cut and press easy work that did not require much energy to keep the business going.

He counts on his family for support during  difficult times. The person he had employed went to school, but he remains optimistic of success as he mentions that he will find another skillful youth to help him run the company.

Though operational space is small, Mr Bock takes pride in satisfying his customers through quality products and services within a reasonable time.

He is currently enjoying the market of designing BOT50 t-shirts that depict patriotism as the nation prepares to celebrate the golden jubilee of Botswana’s independence.

“I was recently honoured by Gatalamotho Softball Club for an outstanding work in designing their kit”, he added. The father of one, who has also introduced his nine year old son to the printing business, has urged the youth to take advantage of government programmes to nurture their talent and make a living out of their craft.

He commended the government for YDF, adding that the programme has a huge potential of uplifting the lives of the youth and diversifying the economy. ENDS