In the economy of the North Region of Cameroon, old tires from cars and trucks are being repurposed into a variety of goods sold across local markets.
From cooking stove supports and sandals to agricultural tools, this informal recycling sector thrives, offering income-generating opportunities to dozens of young Cameroonians who rely on their craftsmanship to earn a living.
A knife and a razor blade, that’s all they need to start crafting daily used objects such as cooking stove supports and sandals. Ahmadou has been doing this job for close to a decade now. We made him craft cooking stove supports with steel wires extracted from old tires.
“As you can see, this is 6mm iron. We use it along with wire from truck tires to build the stove. The small one takes about 30 minutes. The big one can take an hour, sometimes an hour and a half. We sell the small cooking stove for 1,500 francs. Some go for 1,000 francs. Prices vary.” He explained.
Unlike Ahmadou, Parfait has chosen a completely different business. Still, he uses old tires to craft various car parts, offering an alternative for car owners. “There are different slaloms that come off vehicles. Some for cars, others for bikes. For cars, it’s mostly the shock absorbers and arm slaloms. When they wear out, we can fix them. It’s the same for motorcycles. They have several slaloms too, and when they break, we repair them” he stated.
Even though recycling old tires remains an employment opportunity for young Cameroonians, the challenges related to this activity are numerous.
“I was cutting an iron when it injured me. Working with metal is risky. We get hurt sometimes, and it causes a lot of problems” narrated Ahmadou.
Repurposing used tires remains a sector which supports local economies and empowers youths to create and innovate with limited resources.
