Kenyan Man Makes Over KSh 100k Monthly From Scrap Metals

• Nicholas Wambua revealed that after completing his O'levels education, he worked as a truck driver and also farmed various cereals
• As a farmer, he faced erratic weather patterns, so he quit selling cereals and started a scrap metal shop after learning about the business from a friend
• The trader purchases scrap metals at KSh 25 per kilogramme and sells it to industries in Kitengela and Uganda at KSh 30

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Nicholas Wambua, 52, quit his driving and farming jobs in 2019 and now makes millions from jua kali business annually.

Wambua, a native of Machakos county, revealed that after completing his O'levels education, he worked as a truck driver and farmed various cereals.

Why Nicholas Wambua quit his driving job

Wambua revealed that with time, he experienced eyesight problems, which forced him to abandon his driving career and venture into farming.

He faced erratic weather patterns as a farmer, which saw him count losses. This forced him to relocate to Narok in search of better opportunities.

“When I arrived in Narok town, I started a cereal shop where I would order cereals from the Ukambani region. The business was thriving, as I could comfortably pay for my small rented house and provide for my family,” Kenya News Agency quoted Wambua.

How Wambua started the scrap metal business

As an ambitious man, Wambua wanted to earn more income to provide for his large family.

After learning about the business from a friend, he quit selling cereals and started a scrap metal shop.

Bizna Kenya reported that Wambua started the business after visiting a construction site where old iron sheets were disposed of.

He bought the iron sheets at a throwaway price, and as his business expanded, Kenyans trooped to his shop to sell him old iron sheets and scrap metal.

How much does Wambua make from scrap metals?

Wambua said he purchases scrap metals at KSh 25 per kilogramme and sells it to industries in Kitengela and Uganda at KSh 30, making a profit of KSh 5 per kilo.

“Our market is usually in Kitengela and Uganda. In a month, I can sell over 20,000 kilogrammes of scrap metal, which gives me a return of at least KSh 100,000,” he disclosed.

Wambua admitted that not all scrap metal was good quality, so he had to be choosy.

He also noted that he must ensure that his clients do not provide him with stolen goods, which may put him on the wrong side of the law.

Challenges of the scrap metal business

Wambua explained that the scrap metal business has its share of challenges, like any other.

He recalled that, from January to March 2022, former president Uhuru Kenyatta suspended scrap metal enterprises from operating due to an upsurge in vandalism in Kenya.

"I was taken to court and fined heavily for dealing with stolen goods. From that time on, I was careful when buying any goods from members of the public,” he said.

He also exposed one of his customers for selling stolen metals to him, which led to his detainment.

How the scrap metal business helped Wambua

Wambua said he uses the money he makes to provide for his two wives and six children, who depend on him.

With proceeds from the business, he purchased a plot in Narok town, which he planned to develop.

He employed one of his wives to work with him.

How Mombasa trader is minting thousands

Elsewhere, Paul Mwaniki, a scrap metal dealer in Ganjoni, Mombasa, said that he makes an average profit of KSh 5,000 per day or KSh 30,000 weekly from collecting and reselling metallic material.

The advantage that comes with this effort, Mwaniki said, was the creation of employment for groups of people.

He argued that the absence of scrap metal enterprises would leave the country's environment clogged with metallic waste and many more people without sources of income.

Proofreading by Asher Omondi, current affairs journalist and copy editor at TUKO.co.ke.