Farming used to be their only means of income but a new venture has now grabbed the attention of most of the youth in Amadum-Adankwame, a community in the Atwima Nwabiagya district of Ashanti region.
Most of the youth are now engaged in the manufacturing of earthenware bowls.
They have now shifted their attention from farming to the production of earthenware as a means of livelihood.
The venture, according to the youth is a booming one. They however complain of difficulty in accessing loans to expand their business.
The earthenware business used to be a booming one in the community some years back but collapsed due to financial challenges. But then again, the business has found its way back to the community and is gradually bouncing back as most of the youth in area have now found love for it because of the profit associated with the business.
The main raw material needed for the manufacturing of earthenware bowl is clay which is common in the area around this time but scarce during the rainy season.
Whilst some of the youth in the area do both farming and earthenware bowl manufacturing, others like 28 year-old Samuel Twumasi and his friends have totally quit farming and committed fully to earthenware manufacturing .
90 percent of the production process is being done manually.
Samuel Twumasi sells averagely one thousand pieces of earthenware bowls which fetches him about 700 Ghana cedis, a month.
The venture, he admitted is very lucrative and booming but their main challenge has to do with inability to access loans.
“If the government assist me with a low interest loan facility, I can be able to produce more “, he stated.
Kofi Richard is new in the business. He says the venture has made him independent and also called on the assistance of the government to help them expand the business.
Currently, Amadum-Adankwame community is referred to as Ayuwakrom, which literally means earthenware bowl town because the venture is gaining firm grounds in the community.
Residents say the business has drastically reduced rural-urban migration in the community.
story by: Ibrahim Abubakar
