I spend two weeks in 2015 in Malawi, not getting far unfortunately, as I fell ill. What I do remember of the country, is the vast open spaces and it’s friendly, inviting people.
Moses is no different.
He greets me with a kind smile.
I had to wait a long time to speak to Moses, he went home to Malawi, to see his wife and four kids. He takes time out every year, to spend time with his family.
Moses Mumba is from Blantyre, in the southern part of Malawi, and came to Johannesburg in 2005. His aim was to look for a job, to help his family back home.
Moses is a jack of all trades: he started by working for Lucky, the tree feller at Tshepo, after his brother who worked for Lucky, put him in contact with Tshepo. Thereafter he worked in the Sizanani organic vegetable garden for a year. He also worked at the Tshepo car wash for a couple of months, after which he moved to work with Quinton at the gas business from 2014.
Moses says Tshepo helped him when he needed it. Working at Tshepo enabled him to help his family and provide for them. He continues, by saying that he hasn’t experienced conflict at Tshepo and that the people at Tshepo; are good people.
Moses says his biggest dream is to open his own business and in this way, help another individual, he way he was helped. He says he learned from the various jobs at Tshepo, and is inspired to take these skills he’s learned to work for himself and manage a successful business.
Moses walks away with a dream in his heart and a kind smile on his face.