Kisumu is home to several filleting factories which produce close to 150,000 tonnes of fish waste every year. This waste is in the form of the skin, the bones, the intestines and the head. For the longest time, this waste had been causing a huge environmental issue in Kisumu.
The fillets are exported to Europe but what remains behind is the waste. To manage the waste, Kisumu entrepreneur Mr. Newton Owino turned to tanning – the conversion of the fish skin into leather. He also now produces artefacts using the fish bones, ladies’ earrings from the fisheyes, and flowers from the scales. In addition, he tans the intestines to make strings that are used in ladies’ sandals. The collagen part of the fish skin is steamed to produce ‘fish glue’ which is used to join the shoes.
For the tanning, Newton uses extracts from plants found in western Kenya, including banana, cassava and papaya. The dyes are also extracted from plants. These "green tanning agents" are biodegradable and environmentally friendly.
Situated in Kibuye Market is the newly branded Kisumu Leather Dealers Association (KILDA). Conceptualized in mid-2016 under the banner of ‘Kisumu Jua Kali Association’, the association seeks to galvanize footwear establishments in Kisumu in order to advance a common agenda. It represents a group of 33 MSMEs involved in production of footwear and leather articles.
Same members, same locality, same agenda but different name, so what changed?
According to Newton, also the secretary of KILDA, the 33 members of the association were transformed through the SWITCH Africa Green programme training in 2017 leading to a "complete transformation of mindsets."
SWITCH Africa Green project by COMESA Leather and Leather Institute and the Kenya Leather Development Council (KLDC) has helped in the marketing of Newton’s leather products overseas and locally, which has led to an influx of clients. The entrepreneur has also gained considerable exposure from being featured by media outlets such as BBC and Al Jazeera. SWITCH Africa Green programme is funded by the European Union.
The key objectives of this SWITCH Africa Green project for the leather sector have been cluster and mindset transformation, resource optimization, waste reduction, reuse and recycling as well as networking. These goals were set to be achieved through training, networking among beneficiaries and relevant public and private agencies as well as evaluations to ensure continuous improvement.
“For a long time, we have associated our trade with small-scale, low profit, minimal economic impact and more of a means to survive from hand to mouth,” says Newton. “The training opened our eyes to the immense role that MSMEs contribute to the economy of counties and the whole country. As a result, we have been inspired to run more professional and accountable establishments and rally together as an association that is stronger and better equipped to meet the demands of its clientele.”
The association now has a membership of 33 comprising MSMEs specializing in production of shoes, belts, leather drums and fish leather. Members can conduct their trade professionally and deliver best product quality to their clients within Kisumu and the rest of the world.
In order to instill professionalism in its operations, KILDA has employed 11 staff; 8 marketers, while three are involved in administrative work including record keeping which was highly emphasized upon under SWITCH Africa Green training with KLDC.
To promote sustainability, the association has reviewed its operations and is now working in an almost similar fashion to a Savings and Credit Co-operative (SACCO). Members pay a membership fee while profits are handled in such a manner that 20 percent is shared among members and the rest saved up to facilitate the operations of KILDA.
As a result of stronger ties galvanized under the networking platform of SWITCH Africa Green between KILDA and the County Government of Kisumu, the association opened an outlet in Kisumu town. The shop situated in Kibuye market serves as a retail outlet where members showcase and sell their wares as well as an office for KILDA. Members usually agree on the number of products to stock in the shop. Average profits per month to members is about KES 4,000 (USD 40). All orders are done through the association and as such, members who operate under small sheds along the roads now have a place to display their wares and sell to clients.
As a result of the SWITCH Africa Green intervention, association members have been trained on cluster transformation where the need to come together as a cluster has been emphasized upon. In line with this, KILDA now makes joint purchases of leather and other required inputs. For instance, they buy good quality leather in bulk from Nakuru Tanners, another beneficiary of the project. Since orders for leather products are made through the association, members are now able to jointly service orders as opposed to the past when individual members were unable to meet client orders within specified timelines.
As far as access to credit is concerned, the association has managed, through networking with Kenya Industrial Estates (KIE) at the KFMA Strategy Unpacking Workshop, to acquire loans amounting to KES 400,000 (USD 4,000) from the institution. These funds were for business expansion and were allocated to them after an intensive two-week training on financial management and prior registration as a cluster under KILDA. As a result, every, member has a machine to facilitate their operations.
KILDA has also acquired a group medical cover from the National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) for its members and their families to enhance healthcare for the members This was made possible through awareness raising on occupational health and safety offered under the SWITCH Africa Green Project. Additionally, through networking under SWITCH Africa Green, the group was linked up with the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises Authority (MSEA) through which they were able to participate in the Bujumbura trade fair in the last quarter of 2017 which resulted in access to a new market.
KILDA holds various speaking engagements where they invite mentors to come and talk to members on finance, footwear production, marketing among others. They also share their stories with other MSMEs as they seek to broaden the association’s membership.
