A Man, A Plan, A Cyber Café

Here is a very heartwarming and inspirational story from Cameroon about a teenager who beat the odds stacked against him to become a success story and a role model. Orginally published by RPVC Bill on his blog, 27 months.

Sometimes, it’s the small successes that make everything worthwhile. This isn’t a story about a Gates Foundation grant, a fabulous new software project, African tech startup, or a microfinance program designed to serve the needs of thousands. Rather, it’s the story of a single young Cameroonian who through his own grit, determination, talent, discipline and tireless effort made a bright future for himself. His name is Simon, but everyone (and I do mean everyone) in Buea knows him as “Wise Man” now.

Wise Man is just nineteen, and the youngest cyber café owner in Buea, probably the southwest of Cameroon—maybe even the entire country.

Simon was a gangly kid of seventeen when I first met him, back in the tail end of the rainy season of 2006. He lived with his family in a ramshackle house in Sandpit surrounded by avocado, plantain and banana trees. We were practically neighbors, so I saw Simon and his family nearly every day. His father is a retired prison warder and his mother does what many Cameroonian women do, which is cook and care for the extended family living in the house. Simon’s parents, I learned, had invested their modest means in his education and imbued him with a strong sense of morals and responsibility. He struck me right off the bat as an unusually sharp, curious kid.

The job market for young Cameroonians like Simon isn’t the most promising, to say the least. Back then, he found occasional work hauling water to mix cement at construction sites. It was hard going even for a young, able-bodied teenager. The pay was meager at best, and the builders had a habit of postponing payment for his work, often indefinitely.

Simon had a strong interest in computers, so I waived the enrollment fee for the computer training program I’d started at the Teachers’ Resource Centre. He jumped at the opportunity. He sped through the required coursework, took additional classes and earned the first-ever computer training attestation issued by the centre. His thirst for knowledge was something to behold. To this day, he remains my star student—an Outlier in the truest Gladwellian sense.

Attestation in hand, Simon landed a job working at a busy cyber café near the University of Buea. In time, he was managing the place and earning a respectable salary. But he didn’t stop there. No, Simon had his sights set on bigger things: he wanted to take what he’d learned and open his own cyber café.

With a vote of confidence from Hans and myself, Simon was permitted to join a traditional savings group called a njangi which met once a month in a dusty outdoor courtyard. Members included police commissioners, tradesmen, business owners and the like. Simon’s age pegged him as the youngest member by nearly a decade. Even so, he committed a healthy portion of his salary to the pool each month and eventually walked away with 75,000 francs (about $150). This, together with some small personal loans, served as his startup capital.

Many months of hard work later, Simon is now the proud owner of a cyber café called “Master Planner” located on a busy footpath in the heart of Molyko. Since he opened last year, he was forced to abandon his Camtel dial-up connection (too slow and problematic) in favor of WiFi broadband. This required the purchase of an antenna mast (pictured) and networking equipment which he financed in installments. The red and white painted mast is a symbol of achievement that marks his business as a serious venture. Simon couldn’t be happier with it.

Along the way, he’s learned the ropes of owning and operating a small business; keeping books, promoting his café, maintaining equipment, hiring people and often working around the clock. He sleeps stretched out across chairs in his café when he can.

Simon’s also achieved something remarkable that very few Cameroonians his age can claim: he’s created jobs. Master Planner’s generates enough revenue to pay a very livable monthly salary of 30,000 francs (about $60) for someone to fill his shoes as cyber café manager. Simon also engages local hardware technicians, software consultants, network engineers, painters, builders, carpenters, laborers and other tradesmen for contract work.

Recently, Simon donned a suit and was asked to speak at an event focused on entrepreneurship at the University of Buea. Assembled in the amphitheater were the top 5% of students drawn from the business, finance and banking departments along with professors and dignitaries from Yaoundé. Simon ran a PowerPoint presentation and told his story to a rapt audience of academic elites about how he became a successful entrepreneur, against all odds. Today, they seek him out for business advice.

Not too shabby for a young kid from Sandpit. Wise Man, indeed.

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Comments

[Herman M. Yenwo]

It is very heart-warming to read such good news for a change. I hope youths that read this story will be motivated to follow in "Wise Man's" foot steps wherever the opportunity presents itself.

Cheers!

[Innocent Ndifor Mancho]

Some dreams do come true. Tenacity, hard work and a knowledge of oneself and potentials are vital ingredients in achieving. Cameroon has great potentials for entreprise building and business creation. Maybe Wise man could serve as a consultant in the University of Buea for a course in business creation.

This a a great success story. Now we know all is not dead in that craddle of our fathers.

[Bernice Angoh]

I am so proud of him, this is an awesome story!!!!

[Job Vacancy Dubai]

Very inspiring. Good read for those who are loosing hope and lazy.

[Chief Atem Ambrose]

This is a great achievement for an enterprising young man like Simon. This is a good example for the youths to copy and I think Simon would be ready to advise whoever wants to attempt such a venture.

I am proud to see my fellow cameroonian beat the odds in such a country to become a bread winner for himself, his family and other fellow youths who now benefit from his project.

Keep on Simon, God is with you.

Chief Atem Ambrose
Linköping-Sweden

[Andong Akofu]

Yes, Simon's story is a tale of hard work and steadfastness towards a course. He is a young entrepreneur with a high ambition who should probably go places in not so long. But we must also note that, there are many ambitious youths out there with interesting projects which have often failed even at inception as a result of bureaucratic procedures often involved with starting a business. Nightmares about obtaining a business licence abound. Even after that one big obstacle there are more pertinent issues like finding money to pay the ever increasing taxes imposed by the state. It takes a miracle to realise a breakthrough at the end of the year when trying to balance all your account sheets, because you are probably running on a low budget but are required to pay hefty amounts of money for taxes and services.
So let us not publicize one success story because I think there are many more failures. In a country where hard work does not guarantee benefits, meritocracy has given way to mediocrity and bureaucratic control is almost grinding the economy to a halt Simon becomes one lucky chap to have earned the title "Entrepreneur".
Let us rather focus on ways of ameliorating the situation a plebeian finds himself viz a viz the Cameroonian economy.

[Kristo B]

This is the story many Cameroonians. At home and abroad. Hard working people with big dreams. ALl we need is leadership. One day we shall overcome that huddle. Kudos to the wiseman. Keep it up young man.

[nn]

that is really very nice, but i believe this is not what someone could write on the web page. the story sounds very funny and rediculous. sorry

[Wise M]

Hi, Kristo B, I believe you are getting it all wrong ok, listen what make's you to say, the story sound funny and ridiculous, have you ever head of The Power of Favour? if you like to see people succeed in life i don't think you will ever fine any reason to speak like this.

Hey Thanks Mr Dubussi
and God bless you and give you more strength, and thank you all 4 your wonderful comments.
from Wise M

[Vesco]

Master Planner told me he's coming up with something that's going to shake the world, lets see what's it.
But one thing 4 sure, i know what he's capable of, he 's a great man, in fact a Great Hero has been Born unto this our generation.
The last thing he told me was watch Me.