Constrained Mathews Defies Odds

Pauline Dikuelo | Tuesday July 4, 2017 15:59

 

According to Mathews, who owns Masa Manufacturing, it was not a rosy road even though he still persevered.

Having started operations 17 years ago, Masa manufacturing, which currently employs about 13 people makes mobile kitchen, mobile toilets, porta cabins, burglar bars and doors, just to mention but a few.

Taking the Business Monitor through his journey, Mathews said after completing his short-hand course at Tlamelong Rehabilitation Centre, a learning school for the physically challenged, he decided to utilise the skills he acquired to sustain himself.

“After my studies, I decided to start welding, plumbing and doing carpentry. We were fortunate and got P28,000 funding from government through FAP to buy materials and machinery.

Unfortunately, we did not become successful as by then we did not have clients,” he said.

However, the determined Mathews did not give up, as in 2000 he got his first breakthrough after clinching a tender to make sewing machines for primary schools, which boosted his profile and afterwards individuals also started approaching him.

He later got another tender to manufacture 63 four-wheel long-base carts for the Ministry of Agriculture that were used for the ISPAAD programme.

About eight years later, he got another tender from government to manufacture 34 porta cabins (steel container storages) for them.

“It was during that time that I then employed about 36 people temporarily to add to my four staff to help us in the project.

Unfortunately, after the tender I had to cut some of them because I could not afford them and we were failing to get more tenders as well,” he said.

Even though he still get business from Botswana Power Corporation (BPC), Mathews said they have a major challenge of land as he is now using his residential plot, emphasising that the space limits his creativity.

According to him, he wants to manufacture a lot of products that currently the local consumers import from other countries such as rakes, garden forks, shovels, garden chairs, and mobile toilets among others.

“I wnt to explore my talents and be creative, but due to lack of land, we are limited because I want to have a workshop divided into units of manufacturing, plumbing, carpentry and painting as my intention is to employ about 200 people,” he said.

In addition, Mathews said he wants to help people with disabilities like him by sharing with them his skills and motivate them to also utilise their God-given talents to sustain themselves.