Mukantwari eyes Standard certification as Pottery profit increases

Stephanie Mukantwari, whose pottery activities are based in Murundi Sector, Karongi District, says she earns much money from her pottery items which include plates, cups, kettles, jugs, and bowls among others.

This rural woman also makes different kinds of ornaments and construction materials.

It is her business that she is doing since 2017.

Mukantwari started pottery, after a training course on entrepreneurship from a small investment.

All of her handicrafts are made from special clay and sand from Gatagara, Nyanza District, Southern Province.

Once done with the products manufacturing, they last for at least three days in the kiln for being burnt at high temperature to harden them in a durable form and when the process ends, they are removed and painted.

The paints used are also made by Mukantwari using ash, stones and clay.

The market of these products is available in Rubavu City and Kigali city in places such as Librairie Caritas but is mainly bought by tourists, she explains.

“The market is available except during the Covid 19 pandemic. Due to the lockdown measures as tourists are our main clients, we had less clients. Even if local people love and buy our products, foreigners buy more when they come to visit the country.”

Achievements and vision

Mukantwari currently employs five permanent and 15 casual workers among them are woodworkers and those who prepare the clay before it is used.

Mukantwari suffers the lack of dedicated machine to ease her work.

She started with 12 other people but they became discouraged and she was left alone.

“We were a team of 12 people and we started in 2017 working at a pottery site which was set before the genocide against the Tutsi but now I am left alone but I am sure many will join me starting with my current employees.” She says.

“One day we found out that a mad man had spent a whole night destroying our kiln. We failed to agree on resources mobilization so we could repair it because it was expensive. That is how I decided to repair it on my own after others were discouraged”, she said.

Items made from clay which are found at Mukantwari’s site

Mukantwari is still calling them to come back together to avoid scattering effort that is the way she thinks can make them more successful and even more accessible to donors.

However, she said pottery can be more profitable once done professionally.

“I have achieved a lot; I bought two houses in Murundi trading center and a small car (Hilux) that helps us to carry luggage. I can pay for the children’s schooling; I have two at university and another has graduated. All of the money comes from these activities. We were also able to build our own dwelling house and bought a forest of more than Rwf3 million.”

Mukantwari sells her products mainly to tourists in Kigali and Rubavu cities

She plans to buy a bigger car that will help getting closer to row materials, machines used to grind clay and stones and to build a furnace that is wide enough to accommodate many items at once.

Mukantwari says she is targeting to work with Rwanda Standard Board (RSB), to ensure her products comply with standardization requirements, a way that will help in accessing a wider market.