A day in the life of a pure water seller

Twenty five-year-old Ashiru Yusuf journeyed all the way from his home in Zamfara to Abuja six years ago in search of a lucrative means of livelihood in the big city, but has found himself hawking pure water sachets to fend for his family which comprises of himself, his wife and two kids. Yusuf narrated how […]

Twenty five-year-old Ashiru Yusuf journeyed all the way from his home in Zamfara to Abuja six years ago in search of a lucrative means of livelihood in the big city, but has found himself hawking pure water sachets to fend for his family which comprises of himself, his wife and two kids.

Yusuf narrated how his daily business routine begins everyday at 6am when he leaves home and proceeds to his supplier for a bag of pure water, then heads for the streets at 7:30am for the long day of business, attending to Abuja’s thirsty populace.

“I try to go to as many places as possible in hopes that I can quickly sell the pure water I have, head back to the supplier for another bag, and continue from where I left off. My common routes include on top of pedestrian bridges, the expressway, markets and other busy streets before retiring by 6 in the evening.”

“I sell a sachet for N10, so off a bag of 20 sachets of water, I make N100 profit. After I sell a bag, I go back to the supplier and buy another bag and continue until 6pm. On hot, busy days, I can sell up to 12 bags, making around N1,200,” he said.

But on slower days, he makes as little as N500, out of which he has to feed himself and also think of his family back home, saying that oftentimes, he has “nothing to save” by the end of the day.

He explains that he manages to make more money than his other counterparts due to the fact that his supplier sells cold water to him, so he doesn’t have to spend extra money on buying ice blocks to chill the water.

“But at times, when the power supply is bad, the water becomes more expensive so I go as far as Dutsen Alhaji to get it cheaper.  I can’t hike the price of the water because if I sell it at any price above N10, no one will buy it and selling it at that price during such times means that there’s little or no profit,” Yusuf lamented.

Among other issues he faces are competition – seeing that there are so many of them on the streets doing the same thing, and also some drivers collecting water and driving off without paying for it. “It’s very discouraging,” Yusuf said dishearteningly.

But apart from those challenges, Yusuf said his biggest worry is sending his children to school.

“They are small and have not started school; one is still a baby but the other is almost of school age. I have been so worried on how I’m supposed to send them to school off the little money I make. There are days that I make as little as five hundred and it’s from that money I have to feed myself and also send something to my family, and pay for transport to go and see them back home in Zamfara,” he added.

“I’m sure one of these days, my struggles will become a thing of the past. But for now, as long as there’s a demand for cold water, and I’m in a fit state to supply it, I will continue to wake up every day and attend to it,” Yusuf concluded.