In Kano, the business centre of northern Nigeria, thousands of people make a living by feeding their little and medium-sized industries with reprocessed materials such as rubber and iron.
In addition, these local recyclers serve as pain relievers to firms that are finding it difficult to obtain foreign exchange, particularly the US dollar for the importation of materials needed for production.
Recycling of condemned rubber containers, such as jerrycans, kettles, plates, spoons, and disposable bottles, among others, has been taken to another level by both the young and elderly, including women.
It is reported that in Dakota, one of the areas in the city of Kano where such activities are carried out, the situation is a win for them, as well as for small and medium-sized enterprises, according to DailyTrust.
The Chairman of the Kaloma recycling unit in the Dakata axis said he and some of his colleagues had been in the business for more than 15 years.
He said it has been worth the effort as more than a thousand people earn their livelihood from the unit he controls.
He said, “There are over 250 shops within Kaloma alone.” He noted there were more than Five other units in Dakata where hundreds of individuals were gainfully employed.
Surajo pointed out “We have all categories of people who do various things here. Young men go to the towns and villages within Kano and beyond to get condemned rubber.
“They bring them here and we use scales to weigh them and pay based on the quality of the rubber.
“But the most important thing is that it is a new dawn for all of us. We (the recyclers) and the small and medium scale industrialists, who would have been sacked out of business because of the high cost of imports, are all making a fortune, at least by Nigerian standards.”
He continued “Let me give you an example: Buckets and many rubber products you buy at the Sabon Gari market are, to a greater extent, the products of our ingenuity.
“We use different machines to crush the rubber brought by the so-called scavengers.
“Women, for instance, are involved in separating some of the rubber bands, like empty bottles for water, soft drinks and others.”
“So, we help some of these industries to remain alive; and I am sure you will agree with me when you take a visit to Sharada Industrial Estate here in Kano,” Surajo noted.
However, he stated that electricity was the major problem they have in their daily operation.
He explained “The high cost of electricity is what is killing our businesses. As I told you earlier, we use various engines to crush the rubber, and this consumes a lot of energy.
“There is a big metre installed on our premises by the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO). We thank them for this. It is from the metre that various workshops that have smaller metres draw energy.
“We want both the federal and Kano State governments to support us with an alternative but cheap energy source. We also want big time industrialists from Kano, like Aliko Dangote, Abdulsamad Isiaka Rabiu and A.A. Rano, among others, to key into private sector power generation to ease our pains.”
Another recycler in the area, Aminu Ismail, said over 70 per cent of their profit is spent on electricity.
“We heard that in some countries, manufacturers and industrialists spend less than 30 per cent of their income on power. Here, we are left with less than 30 per cent of whatever we get to pay salaries, cover other overheads, and think of expanding the business.
“We want the government to look into the issue of power generation and distribution. Millions of Nigerians are ready to become self-reliant and also give job opportunities to others. We know that government cannot employ everybody, but with political will, it can provide an enabling environment for job creation,” he said.
A manager of one of the medium-sized industries, in Sharada, simply known as Salisu, said that these days they rely heavily on recyclers.
Interestingly, the business has gained recognition as conventional banks and other financial institutions have waded in to assist those involved grow bigger.
