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#ImpactStory Mamadou Sangari – Tailor With Passion

Marie
October 06, 2020

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Sirakoro – 2014

Like every morning, Mamadou Sangar gets up, gets dressed and heads to his master tailor. He is an apprentice to a tailor in Sirakoro, Mali. Once there, Mamadou puts the kettle on, pours hot water onto the dried herbs and serves his instructor the freshly brewed tea. He sits down next to him on the wooden bench and watches him sew. His instructor's hands are experienced and move quickly. Mamadou has to concentrate so as not to miss anything.

Sirakoro – 2019

Five years later, Mamadou Sangari is a trained tailor himself and has followed in his instructor's footsteps. Today, his own apprentices prepare his morning tea and soak up everything he teaches them. They remind Mamadou of himself and he is happy to be able to pass his professional passion on to them.

In Conversation With Mamadou Sangari

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Electricity From Africa GreenTec As an Alternative to Diesel Generators

Mamadou currently has five sewing machines, all of which he still runs on diesel generators. His master had no other alternative at the time. But he wants to do it differently:

The diesel power here is expensive, the generator is too loud and often breaks down. That's why I'm looking for an alternative for my business. I am already a private customer of Africa GreenTec and now I want to use the electricity commercially. I see the benefits and am aware that a reliable source of electricity is necessary to take more orders.
Mamadou Sangari
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For Mamadou, it is more convenient to work in the evening hours as it is cooler then. With electricity available in the evening, he can easily work until midnight if an urgent order comes in.

During the rainy season, fewer customers come to Mamadou. Therefore, he also works in the fields during this time to support his family. He is newly engaged and wants to have something to offer his future wife. That is why he built her a house with his earnings from the business.

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Self-Employment As Fulfillment

For Mamadou, it was always clear that he wanted to be self-employed. He has seen with family and friends how quickly one can be dismissed as an employee and be without income for a while. Now he is his own boss and earns money doing something he enjoys. For the future, Mamadou hopes that he can expand further and inspire more people for the art of tailoring.

If you can do something really well, it's a great thing. I am really happy when I can teach young people how to tailor and see them do it with the same passion as I do. We dress the whole of Sirakoro. We make sure that people here are well dressed and confident because of their clothes. I'm proud of that, that's why I keep going.