BUJUMBURA January 31st ( ABP) – Viola Niyongere, a young graduate living in the Kamenge zone, in the urban commune of Ntahangwa, testified, Thursday January 25, 2024, during an interview she gave to the ABP, that the manufacturing shoes from tires and fishing nets contributes to its financial independence.
Mrs. Niyongere, aged 30, indicated that her profession began in 2017 at the end of her university studies, at the Ecole Normale Supérieure (ENS), in Mechanical Engineering. She said that from a young age, she learned to embroider tablecloths from her classmates.
She specified that her first concern after her academic career was to sell clothes, adding that it was during her procurement, in one of the markets in the city of Bujumbura, that she saw fishing lines of all the colours.
She then started making earrings and bracelets which did not bring her much, she emphasizes. That’s where I developed the idea of making shoes that could make a profit for him. “I then approached a shoemaker so that he could teach me his know-how.” “When I made my first pair of shoes, I shared the photos with my friends and family who helped me with marketing. Customers started placing orders gradually. »
She said she earns money to be able to support herself and also fulfill family tasks. With the increase in orders, Mrs. Niyongere indicated that she was able to employ eight people, which contributes to reducing unemployment.
She also won a prize of 1,200,000 BIF as part of the Light Awards competition for creative art, organized by the Lumière University of Bujumbura.
She thus called on young people in general, and more particularly women who do not yet have a job, to launch into entrepreneurship.
Many people, especially young people, are afraid of going bankrupt and prefer to do nothing, but “no risk, no gain,” according to Ms. Niyongere. You have to dare to take chances, she pointed out.