Friday, March 29, 2024

How I Am Making A Fortune From Water Hyacinth

For a long time, fastest growing weed in Lake Victoria has been a headache to fishermen. While they make losses due to its infestation, Michael Otieno discovered the bright side to this plant literally and metaphorically

Most people know it as an invasive weed which has affected thousands of fishermen in Kenya, water transport and to a large extent, the country’s economy.

However, Michael Otieno has found an innovative way of turning this weed into paper products. It all began in 2001, after dropping out of school in Form Two, Otieno was oblivious to what the future had in store for him, but he joined Kisumu Innovation Centre Kenya (Kick) anyway.

While here, he trained on how to make household items such as furniture using water hyacinth and papyrus weed. After the training, he decided to go back to school and in 2003 he was readmitted. This time round, he completed his education but decided to go back to KICK rather than enrol at a university.

He trained for one year again on how to make paper products using water hyacinth weed and recycled paper. “We were taught how to make the products, but during training we were using more papers than the weed and I decided to come up with a new product by using more weed than paper,” said the 27-years -old entrepreneur.

Armed with Sh10,000 from his savings, Otieno decided to start his own enterprise in 2006 and that is how Takawiri Enterprises-an organisation that produces attractive paper products such as gift bags, notebooks, business cards, greeting cards and currently decorative packaging for tea from water hyacinth and waste paper was born.

“The idea behind this enterprise was to pump up the freedom for trial and error. So far, I’m grateful that things are on course. I believe eventually my conception will produce the best products from this invasive weed,” he said.

Based in Mamboleo area in Kisumu, his company employs over 30 people directly and indirectly, who are able to produce 100 sheets of paper per day, later developed to different products depending on demand.

“Currently, we are doing this manually, but once I purchase a machine to make the products, the turnover will triple. Production is mainly done in Kisumu, but we deliver countrywide,” he adds.

Otieno says that hyacinth is collected and transported to their premise with the help of fishermen along the shores of Lake Victoria and later converted into pulp and used to make paper.

The production process is environmental friendly since there are no chemicals used and the water used is recycled severally throughout the process that takes eight hours to dry paper in the sun.

“Use of water hyacinth in paper production is an intervention in the control and management of the weed that has colonised Lake Victoria. We supply our papers to Ajiri Tea and other companies, but since the ban of plastic bags the demand is high,” an elated Otieno confirms.

He says financing from banks when undertaking capital intensive projects has been one of the biggest challenges his business has faced. He, however, adds that Kenya Climate Innovation Centre has ennhanced his business acumen by providing incubation, capacity building services and financial headway.

Either way, he hopes that he will be able to buy a machine that will not only make his work easier, but also cheapen his products. “Currently, our products are selling at between Sh50 and Sh75 depending on the size.

Since our purchases are all manual, we hope that once we get a machine the price will drop by half,” he said. Going forward, Otieno plans to start waxing his carrier and gift bags, to make them waterproof and all purpose. In the same breadth, he aspires to invest in a solar drier to make the paper drying process easier and faster.

Via; mediamax

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