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Man survives on selling bones

WITH the high unemployment rate in Namibia, some people have lost hope of ever finding a job and decided to do something for themselves instead of sitting back, complain and demand jobs from the government.

Mctodiu Jonas is one such young man who is determined not to let the scarcity of formal employment pull him down.

He collects discarded bones in Havana informal settlement in Windhoek and sells them to eke out a living.

The 29-year-old, who hails from Okalongo Constituency in Omusati Region, decided to move to Windhoek three years ago to look for a job.

After almost two years of an endless search, Jonas decided to collect bones and sell them to a businessman from Okahandja.

“Working for yourself is good. Who must I wait for to give me a job? Everybody cannot be employed either by private sector or government so some of us have to create jobs for ourselves,” Jonas, a Grade 10 dropout told The Namibian.

The father of two says he makes about N$600 a month and uses N$350 to pay rent for his kambashu. “After paying rent, I send some of the money to my children in the north,” he said.

Although collecting and selling bones is not an easy business venture, Jonas is happy since he does not rely on other people to put food on his table.

Jonas said he hoped that one day prices of bones would increase since most youths did not have skills or educational qualifications and were wallowing in poverty while most resorted to crime to survive.

clemans@namibian.com.na

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