Sokoto GSM Village: Where youths are gainfully employed

The Sokoto GSM Village, situated at the popular Hajiya Halima Estate in the metropolis, has remained a major source of employment to the teeming youth in the state.  The coming of GSM phones in Sokoto about 15 years ago has provided the opportunity for some youths to start businesses of their own through the sale, […]

The Sokoto GSM Village, situated at the popular Hajiya Halima Estate in the metropolis, has remained a major source of employment to the teeming youth in the state.

 The coming of GSM phones in Sokoto about 15 years ago has provided the opportunity for some youths to start businesses of their own through the sale, repair and lamination of phones, as well as trade in accessories and recharge cards.

 Established in 2011, the GSM Village is always a beehive of activities as hundreds of people – old, young, male and female – troop there for reasons connected to phones and their services.

Big umbrellas dot the entrance to the market, which is situated directly opposite the Sokoto Central motor park. Prices of phones, which are variously displayed on cubicles, range from N3,000 to over N100,000, depending on the type. It is said that the prices of phones are more reasonable at the village than other outlets because of the competition among traders.

The Sokoto GSM Village is characterised by lockup shops, each accommodating three to five phone sellers and technicians.

When Daily Trust on Sunday visited the village, phone technicians and their apprentices were seen sitting on long benches, placed behind long desks where they displayed their tools, including some electrical gadgets that made up their working kits.

Those who laminate newly purchased phones or sell sim/recharge cards mostly operate under big umbrellas.

Speaking on the history of the market, the chairman of the Sokoto GSM Village Association, Alhaji Nura Mamman Tuji, 32, said, “Fifteen boys started the business, but today we have 855 members. Among them are phone/accessory dealers, technicians and apprentices.”

He said they recently registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission under the name, United GSM Village. 

“From the revolving fund system we adopted, we finance the training of new entrants and give them takeoff grants as soft loans to enable them start their own businesses. Others are sponsored to further their studies. Among our members are holders of the National Certificate in Education (NCE) and diploma, whose studies were financed through our association’s revolving fund. We encourage members to go to school, and after graduation, they continue with their GSM business.

“Many of our members got married, acquired valuable assets and are conveniently looking after their families despite the economic downturn in the country,” he disclosed.

On the challenges they face in the village, the chairman said some phone thieves sometimes hide under the umbrellas of their members to sell stolen items to unsuspecting buyers, especially when the owners of such spots did not come to the market. As a result of this, their members are sometimes accused of selling stolen phones. 

“But any member found wanting is punished accordingly by placing him on suspension or making him pay a fine, depending on the gravity of the offence,” he said. 

Tuji further disclosed that undercover security agents monitor activities at the village, adding that there is a cordial relationship between the association and law enforcement agents in the state. He appealed to the government for soft loans and a

piece of land to build a permanent market for their members.

 Yanda Adamu Zubair is one of those the association sponsored for NCE programme at the Shehu Shagari College of Education, Sokoto. He told our correspondent that, “After graduation I continued with my GSM repair services since there is no other job for me. I decided to remain at the GSM Village where there is a daily uninterrupted business.

“I have trained boys who are now independent and have gotten the association’s support to operate on their own.

“I got married and take very good care of my family. I also purchased a piece of land. My family is living fine.”

He called on the government to provide a modern GSM phone repair centre where youths can receive training and become self-employed. He also urged youths to come to the GSM Village and receive training even if they are in school, so that they can have something to fall back on.

Another member of the association, Nura Mukaddami, 32, said, “I started selling phones in 2012 with N29,000. It has grown to N500,000. I have trained five boys on how to make profit from selling phones. From the business I got married, have six children and we are living comfortably.”

Bashir Shake, 45, another phone seller who started GSM phones business in 2001, said the high cost of things in the country had reduced their profits. He, however, described the business as rewarding.

“I have done a lot through the GSM business. I got married, acquired assets and take good care of my family,” he said. 

He advised youths to join the business so as to become self-reliant.