RUTANA, June 10 (ABP) – In a context where employment is becoming increasingly scarce, especially for young graduates, calls to promote manual trades are multiplying. In this light, Mr. Prime Ntahimpera, head of a carpentry workshop located in the Birongozi neighborhood in Rutana city center, is urging young people to consider artisanal trades as a genuine alternative to salaried employment.
In an interview with the check by the ABP, Mr. Ntahimpera shared his personal experience, which reflects both the challenges and the opportunities that trades can offer.
A law graduate, he unfortunately found himself among the large number of young Burundians who, after completing their higher education, end up unemployed. “After my graduation, I was unemployed for many months. That’s when I decided to return to the trade my father had taught me during my childhood. Today, it’s this trade that allows me to live with dignity,” he testified.
Mr. Ntahimpera explained that at the beginning, he had neither sufficient asset nor external support. He had to make do with very modest means: two saws, a few salvaged tools, and a lot of determination. Little by little, thanks to his dedication, he succeeded in building a loyal local clientele, improving the quality of his products, and increasing his production.
He says he is now able to meet his family’s needs, including covering his children’s schooling, something he considers a major success.
This experience is far from isolated. Many young Burundians who have been unable to enter the formal job market have found refuge in trades such as carpentry, welding, sewing, or modern agriculture. These sectors, often underestimated, are in fact essential pillars of the local economy.
Mr. Ntahimpera laments that the Burundian education system remains overly theoretical and does little to prepare youth for self-employment. This is why there are increasing calls for stronger integration of technical and vocational training starting from secondary school, he noted. “It’s time to change our mindset. Learning a trade is not a failure; it is a noble path. A degree alone no longer guarantees a secure future,” insists Mr. Ntahimpera.
To promote local craftsmanship, he suggests that schools should collaborate with artisanal workshops, allowing students to explore trades alongside their academic training. “If every young person could leave school with a trade in hand, unemployment would gradually decline,” he added, emphasizing that Burundian society should stop marginalizing so-called manual professions.
This testimony, he says, illustrates a growing reality in Burundi: in the face of persistent unemployment, manual trades are becoming not only a viable alternative but also a lever for economic self-reliance. It is now up to everyone, youth, educators, parents, and decision-makers, to change the way these trades are perceived and make them a true path to the future.