Zakariya Mohammed, an ex-convict, says he earns over N150,000 monthly from shoemaking.

Mr Mohammed started the business five months ago.

He learnt bag and shoemaking skills while serving a term at the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Billiri, Gombe. Mr Mohammed stated this in an interview on Friday, stressing that his life is now meaningful as an ex-convict.

The skill, he said, empowered him to fend for his needs and those of his family as he rakes in between N5,000 and N7,000 daily, depending on patronage.

According to him, the price of a pair of handmade shoes ranges from N1,000 to N3,000, while the bags go for between N700 and N2,500, depending on their size and quality.

Mr Mohammed said he also made money from amending and redesigning shoes and made good savings from the trade.

Prior to his conviction, Mr Mohammed, 26, had no skills and now considered his time in jail a blessing.

“When I was sent to the correctional centre, I became so sad because I thought my life was finished. For some days upon my arrival, I was always thinking and frustrated about how I would spend years in the correctional facility serving my sentence,” said the Gombe shoemaker.

Mr Mohammed added, “Until one day, Mr Christopher Jen, the then deputy controller in charge of the facility, approached me and encouraged me to take one of the several skill acquisition programmes of my choice.

“Thank God, I joined, and I started learning shoemaking, and after completing the training, I moved further to learn how to make bags. I spent two years and six months there. I was released in June 2023. and opened my shoemaking shop, and today, I am making my own money.”

Mr Mohammed said he set up his business with the support of his family members, who were happy with the skills he acquired while in the correctional centre.

“After my release, my family learnt that I had acquired skills while in the correctional centre, so they bought sewing and shoemaking machines and other materials for me to set up my shop,” said the shoemaker.

Mr Mohammed engaged 11 apprentices currently training in bag and shoemaking to ensure the smooth running of his business.

He commended the federal government for introducing skill acquisition programmes in correctional centres while appealing for support for ex-inmates who acquired various skills to enable them to set up businesses and become self-reliant.

“This will ensure that they don’t go back to crimes or drugs; I am now too occupied to think of crime. All I think of now is how to satisfy my customers,” he stated.

(NAN)