39 WAYS OF MAKING MONEY IN AFRICA.

Don’t miss this chance of reading this blog. Many people have written how to make money in different ways. However, I find it irreverent to the African residences, especially in southern Sahara to use the European and Western world of how to make money. Their methods and ways are not applicable in our mother Africa.

Growing up in Africa taught me lots of ways to make money in an African way not using the high tech that may be used today.

In my previous articles, I mentioned making money through an online business that is trending to most people both in African countries and developed ones.

Some ways of making money in Africa may seem to be difficult for others and others may look at them as cheap and dirty means of surviving.

A COVID-19 era has taught people lots of activities that eventually will turn into future business. As I could be glancing at my PC during the days of lockdown people were experiencing new skills of baking, cooking, gardening, and other domestic activities.

some of the activities we used to do to make money;

1. Brick making, it’s a tiresome job but highly paid. I could wake up at 6:00 am I make 200 bricks and leave them to dry. After 14 days I could gather firewood for baking them. This is a good business that makes a strong young man rich in a few years. After doing this hardworking business, it will gather your capital that will enable you to hire workers and there your business will grow.
2. Quarrying stones; If you have land that is full of hardcore for construction may be a golden opportunity for your future riches. However, care must be taken seriously with this kind of work.
3. Quarrying sand, my parents had sand in the land, and sometimes I could dig up a heap to make business. It’s a vigorous activity compared to making bricks as it can cause chest and back pain. Loading a truck using a spade wasn’t an easy task, however, I didn’t have any other option not to do that.
4. Charcoal making/burning; some countries will not allow this but it can also be a good business to make money for you in a short period of time. People who have become rich from this business won’t tell you the secret as it looks dirty and for uneducated individuals. Personally, I have done this business before and it was surely a paying venture.
5. Fetching firewood from the forest for sale; If you have a forest nearby, this can be good business. Remember to plant more trees as you may have no more firewood next year.
6. Making beds of trees of different species is a good business for young people. There are different government programs that encourage tree planting in different countries in Africa and this could be an opportunity if you have tree beds for sale.
7. Working in people’s gardens is also an easy way of making money. Most young people who live next to cotton and tea estates in African countries are assured of their pair every Friday and this enables them to buy food and other home necessities for their siblings and even sometimes to their old parents.
8. Fishing is relatively easier and a hobby that will earn your money in Africa, since almost all parts of African countries are covered with water bodies that include, rivers, lakes, swamps, and streams that are rich in harboring all kinds of fish that live in freshwater lakes.
9. Looking after someone’s animals is also another money-making business where you sure of being paid the agreed amount of money. Some animal owners pay their keepers in form of animals instead of cash.
10. Making footballs and other crafts from fiber for sale.
11. Making mats from papyrus for sale, which could be used as carpets, room partitioning, and ceiling. Once a papyrus is well made it make a good design for the house.
12. Fetching grass from the swamp to mulch rich people’s gardens in the village.
13. Making wooden carriages(bicycles) to sell as it is cheap to maintain.
14. Making paper beads is also another way of making money since it doesn't necessitate you to have a lot of capital. Another advantage with this kind of business is that you can make your product unique depending on the kind of paper material you have.
15. Starting up a barber salon for men; most people have made a living in this business since everyone has at one point shave his or her hair. It's a good business since you set your own price/rates without any restrictions.
16. Nail polishing is another one you won't go wrong; many young people move from house to house polishing people's nails. This business is easy to start and maintain as you will not need a lot of capital.
17. Knitting the cloth tables for sale and skill for a newly married groom for keeping busy.
18. Collecting the scrap, like old plastic unused containers for recycling and old metals like the old iron box that would be beyond repair sold as scrap

1. Old newspapers are good business for growing and strong youth that can move from place to place gathering them.
2. Selling bushmeat; Some countries don't have lots of restrictions on poaching/hunting; meaning that if you have good skills of hunting you can make money through selling bushmeat which is a delicacy to some people.
3. Making liquid soap is also another business that can make you daily incomes as it requires minimal capital and little time spent on manufacturing.
4. Making local gin like waragi in most African countries was good business as it has a good market for those who enjoy dry gin.
5. Chalk making is also another easy business that will benefit you as you do not need a lot of capital for the startup.
6. Repairing shoes and sandals is a good business for those people with the skill and this cannot be found in most developed countries.
7. Repairing radios is also one of the activities you could venture into. Some people even do not know how to fix radio batteries and are ready to pay someone that has fixed it.
8. Selling airtime(credit) for a call is still a good business in most African countries as some people do not have access to bank cards.
9. Making pancakes from the local materials for sale is also a good idea for young people to make money. This does not need lots of skills to do this business.
10. Selling newspapers is also a manageable business that you can start right away with little capital. You sell on a commission basis and not losses that will be realized as you will have to take back the remaining copies to the company.
11. Selling old books in African countries does not cost you a lot of capital but you earn good money as you can sell an old copy at its original price like the new ones
12. Selling used/old clothes and shoes in most African countries is a source of income that can be done by most people. Personally, I did this business in the babies’ clothes and this could pay well.
13. If you own a car, you can change it from being private to public transport since in some countries you find there are no formal ways of commuting from one area to another. This also applies to bicycles and motorbikes.
14. Don’t forget the business of repairing bicycles which is easy and can make you money since most people in hard to reach areas use this kind of transport.
15. There is also money in fetching water for other people in most parts of Africa especially during the dry season where you find getting just a liter of water is very difficult to find.

35. It doesn’t matter whether you own a house or land in most African countries to be a blocker. You just need to build trust between clients and owners of last.

36. Another source of income in Africa is to work as a helper at the construction site. This might seem to be a heavy work for only strong teenagers, however, in circumstances where you do not have anything to eat, this can be a good venture for you. 

37. Hocking food or selling food in the bus/car park. Some countries in Africa still do not have tight restrictions of selling food in public places like in the bus pack. Some young people decide to make a living by packing chips and fruits that are sold to passengers.

38. From the above paragraph, it also applies to sell cars. The moment you get to know a person A is selling his or her car. You put it on market and at the end of the day you earn your commission.

39. If also you have a registered company, you can start another business that is similar to a house blocker but relatively different and this is easy to make in most African countries. What you do is sign an agreement with the house owner{Landlord/Lady} that you are the one to collect rent fees from tenants on their behalf and in this agreement you state that you will pay promptly every end of the month and this becomes a task for you to demand rent from the tenants.

I shared this business with someone in 2016 so as to enter into a partnership, and went ahead and started it before we signed. He is making good progress and appreciates for my advice though.