A beneficiary of the Npower programme, a federal government-sponsored youth empowerment scheme, Mohammed Malami, has set up a thriving tea recipe business with his monthly stipend.
Malami, who is based in Gashua headquarters of Bade Local Government Area in Yobe State, disclosed that he was among the 2016 first batch beneficiaries of the scheme
He said although he did not start enjoying the N30,000 monthly stipend as early as his mates, he never dropped his intention to invest the money whenever it came.
Sharing his story with Kanem Trust, Malami said he suffered some technical hiccups that delayed his stipends for 16 months.
Another challenge he faced was that one year after he started receiving his stipends, the payment stopped and all attempts to tackle the situation were unsuccessful.
“Upon receiving my first payment in 2018, I quickly initiated a monthly contribution of N20,000 with 12 of my friends and asked them to allow me take the first deposit of N240,000, which they did.
“I had plans on how to invest the money, so I quickly joined another group of monthly contribution. I have been using the money to do some little buying and selling.
“I had taken my time all along to do some feasibility studies on the gaps that exist in business around my area and consulting my relatives on my plans to start a business.
“From my research, I learnt that we have bulk of tea sellers in the town that mostly source their recipes from Kano and I became so eager to use that golden opportunity to invest in that area.
“I ventured into the business with N250, 000 capital, and within a short period I pulled in many customers.
“I didn’t wait for customers to come to my shop, I also went to distribute the items to their doorsteps. As I got more profit, I kept enlarging the business.
“I sell tea bags of different varieties and recipes, such as cloves, ginger, lemon grass and so on. I also supply noodles and other beverages to my customers,’’ he said.
He said the business was ideal for any youth who wanted to engage himself as it pays.
“As I speak to you, I get nothing less than N300,000 as daily sales turnover and I make a profit ranging from N5000 to N30,000 daily, depending on the volume of customers I have for the day,’’ he said.
Malami thanked the government of President Muhammadu Buhari for bringing empowerment schemes aimed at reaching and uplifting the lives of the poor.
He urged the government to support small medium enterprises with loans and link them up with companies who would supply them products at a discount rate.
He also advised youths who would be engaged in the programme to use the advantage and invest to be self-reliant, stressing that government could not employ every Nigerian.
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