Typically, sound engineering and charcoal making are chalk and cheese – diametrically different. Intriguingly, a qualified sound engineer, Given Ngwamba, the owner of Ndzilo Charcoal Briquettes, narrates to unemployed South African Youth, how he ended successfully running a charcoal manufacturing business.
If he had his way, Given Ngwamba, would have been a sound engineer, unknown, working behind the scenes of a top notch media company, with executives unfairly earning all the plaudits, basking in the limelight, for his hard slog. Ngwamba completed his studies at the National Electronic Media Institute of South Africa and qualified as a sound engineer. But fate decreed that he would chart a different path. And after his efforts to find a job proved vain – instead of letting frustration overwhelm him – it dawned upon him that that his calling could be elsewhere. And it has paid off handsomely – even beyond his wildest imagination.
Through his company, Ndzilo Charcoal Briquettes, 36 year old Ngwamba manufactures doughnut-shaped charcoal that produces lighter smoke compared to regular charcoal from wood and catches fire faster. It has become a favourite for both locals and big businesses
Mostly, he revels in buy-in from the community. “Whenever there are power cuts, people come to my house to buy.” What started as an experiment has now evolved into a venture that counts a local Pick n’ Pay as one of his major clients.
Ngwamba owes his success to more about being realistic enough to adapt to the situations rather than knocking on doors that would not just open, no matter how hard he tries.
What has become the grueling and agonising ritual of looking employment that young South African graduates are familiar with, broadened his horizons to look beyond for opportunities elsewhere. And he spotted this in charcoal.
Although the supply of charcoal was nothing new in Naas, a small township in Mpumalanga, he saw a niche market in the reliable supply of ‘effective, yet environmentally friendly charcoal’ . “One day I was at the back of my house and thought ‘maybe let me try charcoal. I had seen some people buy it and I thought maybe I could get into the business.”
In the course of seeking alternatives, research led Ngwamba to the discovery that one could make charcoal of agriculture waste such as sugarcane, coconut, waste from mango trees, and banana trees. He reminisces: “I discovered that this is something sustainable and it’s the future. It solves the problem of deforestation and doesn’t add to carbon emission and climate change.
Self-driven and innovative
Ngwamba is self-driven and innovative in every sense, as he has had to improvise where necessary. For instance, no lending institution was willing to take a gamble on a start-up, let alone in an unfamiliar territory of producing ‘environmentally friendly’ charcoal. He then then designed his own equipment and engaged a welder to do the fabrication.
Furthermore, transporting waste from nearby farms was a challenge. “I used to use my wheelbarrow to collect the mango trees after people cleaned them, I’d get home and continue to work.”
If that were not enough the other struggle was to convince consumers that his alternative charcoal was just as effective as the traditional type made from trees. Now, thanks to persistence, he has a loyal customer base.
The process of producing charcoal from agricultural waste is needs meticulous attention. It takes two weeks for Ngwamba and his team to do the work. “In one week we do carbonisation, like converting the waste. In the second week, we do the final processing of the charcoal making them into the doughnut-shaped briquette,”he explains. The company can easily make 200kg of charcoal dust in a day when using about five big drums. “It’s mostly about carbonising and briquetting.
The business works within its means, in terms of managing operating costs – one step at a time. The charcoal making outfit still operates from Ngwamba’s backyard and an empty piece of land. In due course, there are plans to build a warehouse. However, now it is about building capacity.
For Ngwamba, past experience has been an adequate lesson on Life 101. He has been through a wilderness of hardships – struggling to find a job related to his specialty and futilely trying to launch an online business.
If ever there is a moral South African’s unemployed youth can learn is: “When one door is closed, try opening others.” While it may sound a worn-out chestnut, in South Africa’s context, it is as relevant as ever.
