Young farmer and entrepreneur Terrence Maphosa has spoken of how he left city life to venture into farming in rural areas after failing to get a job despite having a university degree. Maphosa (TM), the founder and chief executive officer of KwaTerry Chickens told Alpha Media Holdings chairman Trevor Ncube (TN) on the platform In Conversation with Trevor that after graduating with a political science degree from the University of Zimbabwe he realised that he was holding a qualification that was not suitable for the local job market. He spoke about the need for career guidance for school children, especially in rural areas. Below are excerpts from the interview.
TN: Terence Maphosa, welcome to In Conversation With Trevor.
TM: My brother thank you so much. I am so excited to be here.
TN: You know, you have driven what, 180km to join us, so we do not take this for granted at all.
- We are grateful that you were able to make it.
- Terry, you are 30 years old and you are a political science graduate.
- I was saying to myself, how do you come from political science and then into farming?
- Talk to me Terry about why you decided after one and half years after graduating that you would go into chicken farming, and farming generally?
TM: So basically, it is me getting out of the comfort zone because when you are at college you are stuck deeply into the comfort of the numbers, but when you graduate you are now going into the reality.
My background is I come from the rural areas. I was born, raised and learnt in the rural areas.
The only time that I started staying in town was when I went to the University of Zimbabwe (UZ).
So, it was me facing the reality.
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Now you have graduated, I wanted to be an activist.
I wanted to hold political office.
So, after college I tried to be in politics, I did.
I was once arrested in Gweru, I tried to do a demonstration, a solo demonstration in Gweru.
I was arrested. That was in 2016.
That was for me a wake-up call.
I was arrested, I was in police cells for about 48 hours.
At that time 2016, I was working at a furniture shop.
I remembered back home, I have a mother who is disabled, and other siblings and those people are looking up to you as a graduate who is supposed to look after the family.
TN: You are the firstborn?
TM: I am the third born, but I am the one at home.
So people are looking at you as the one who is supposed to look after the family, and you are there and you are not earning enough to even pay your rentals.
In the midst of that comfort zone I had to say to myself, okay what is the plan?
What is the sustainable plan for myself and for the family and for my image?
I was coming from the village, and from that village I was the only graduate, so people will be saying I went to university and what is there now?
So for myself, it was me swallowing my pride and saying okay let me start this, if it works it works, If it fails then that is it.
TN: So tell me Terry. You say you tried a one-man protest? What was the reason for that protest?
TM: That was the (Robert) Mugabe era, he was president then.
TN: What had happened? What caused you to want to protest?
TM: This energy from political science, from college, that was just the drive.
Those were the days of Tajamuka. So Tajamuka was mainly focusing on Harare.
So at that time in Gweru there was no one doing it.
It was just me waking up on a Saturday and I said to myself today I want to try this. Whatever the outcome…
TN: Was there anything specific that you were upset with? Do you remember or was it just the entire Mugabe thing?
- Was it something specific that ticked you off?
TM: I wanted a job.
TN: Aha.
TM: But the reality is with political science in our country you are not marketable that much.
It was just me with my frustrations.
So I came from Mkoba, I was staying in Mkoba 14 at that time, on my way to town that is when I started.
I had my placards, I was shouting, I had my phone taking a video and then that was it.
TN: You got arrested?
TM: I got arrested. Then I was thrown in the cells.
TN: You were not beaten or anything of that sort?
TM: No. I was actually surprised. They did not even put me in cuffs.
TN: So, you say the political science degree in Zimbabwe is not marketable?
- Yet there is a lot of people that go into that degree?
TM: There is a gap that needs to be filled. Career guidance is lacking, especially for us coming from the rural areas.
Yeah, you are just told to go and grab any degree and then what?
Political science to be honest, yes, it is a good degree, I am not discouraging those who are doing it, but what are you going to do with political science in Zimbabwe?
TN: You went into political science, was it out of choice or it was the one degree you were offered? The only opportunity that you were offered?
TM: I actually applied for political science.
TN: You did? Why did you want to do political science?
TM: I wanted to do Law, but I had 12 points (A-Levels), so UZ wanted 15 points at that time.
So I wanted to do Law but because my points did not meet the requirements I then applied for political science.
I wanted political science by the time I went to college, I really wanted political science.
TN: Why?
TM: After seeing that I could not do law, now I felt like okay I can go the political route.
TN: Yeah.
TM: That was me. The whole family was and is even up to know looking at me as the person, you are the man.
TN: You are the third born? Where are the other two?
TM: My brother is there. We have four sisters and two of us boys.
My sister is married, but at that time things were not okay for her, and my brother as well, at that time he was out of the country.
TN: Your family is looking up to you?
TM: The family is looking up to me, and you are there and you are an activist. Not to say it is bad, but for my family now…
TN: It does not put food on the table?
TM: Probably for other families it is, but for my family it was not.
TN: Okay.
TM: So, it was me facing the reality and saying okay.
Now I had a small corner in the rural areas that I could utilise with something, so I decided to try out the road runner project, then I went full force into it.
TN: Would it be fair for me to say going into farming was because you could not find anything else to do? There are no jobs in the country for political science graduates like yourself? Then you find yourself with this option? Is that what happened or am I wrong?
TM: That is what happened. However, I was working mind you, but what I was getting…
TN: Where were you working sorry?
TM: Of course, I cannot disclose the company, but it was in line with furniture. That time my salary could not pay for my rentals, and I think we would go 4-5 months without getting a salary.
So, my brother was working in South Africa, so he would send groceries to my mum, and my mum would take that grocery and send in some to town.
For me it did not make sense at all.
TN: Wow.
TM: So yes, I was working, but I could not even buy myself new shoes at that time.
TN: And you would go for months without getting a salary?
TM: I would go for moths without getting a salary.
For me it did not make sense to keep hearing the people saying Terry lives in town, but when you come for Christmas what are you holding for the family?
You have nothing.
TN: Then you decide that you are going to go into farming?
- Talk to me about what goes through your mind as you walk towards that decision?
- What factors you have to consider? You have got the piece of land, where did the piece of land come from? Talk to us about that?
TM: It is not easy for a rural boy, growing up with ambitions, with visions, picturing your life staying in a good suburb in town.
And for you to now take a step back and say I am going to start again at the roots.
To be honest it is not easy, but that was the reality for me because I have a small corner, it is just close to two acres.
That is where my mum stays, that is where I was staying, that is where I am staying right now.
The only feasible project that I could go for was the chickens. I could not go for market gardening as I do not have water.
I could not go for goats as I did not have enough capital to start the goats. The capital investment would just be way too big for me.
So the only thing that was feasible for me was to go for the road runner chickens, but it was just me and the drive without the knowledge because it was a complete new ground.
Yes I grew up in the rural areas. You are keeping your few chickens at home, but now this was a project.
TN: Circumstances have forced you to look at the road runner as a business…
TM: True.
TN: To look at farming as a business? Circumstances have forced you to do that?
TM: Circumstances opened my eyes, not that they forced me.
TN: Wow.
TM: This is because there is something interesting. When I was growing up I wanted to be a musician, hahahaha.
TN: Why you laughing? Why you laughing Terry?
TM: I actually laugh at my songs when I listen to them because I actually have a couple of recorded tracks. So I wanted to be an artist.
I used to go to gigs sometime when I was in college.
My mum said this route was not good, you know you cannot be an artist as it was against Church principles. I am Adventist, so this and that, I would only be going to perform if God opens it up for me is what she said.
I believe my mum was probably praying against the idea! I remember another time I was writing the songs for the UZ.
I wrote some songs for them, the 2016 graduation I am the one who wrote the songs.
TN: Wow.
TM: There was a graduation for the professors I remember, they gave me a theme and I did a song for them again.
TN: Did they pay you for those?
TM: Yah they did, they paid me good money.
TN: Okay.
TM: I wanted to be a celebrity, an artist.
My mum reminded me last year as I was coming home on a daily basis to see the project, she said did I not pray for this?
You wanted to be well known but now you are known with something else, not the music route?
So in as much as I can say circumstances forced me, I believed and still believe probably that was my call, because the way things opened up for me, sometimes I feel like it was a mystery.
TN: Talk to me about how the things opened up for you?
TM: When I started the project, I bought 400 chicks.
TN: Where did you get the money from?
TM: My four months’ salary.
TN: Okay.
TM: So, I bought the chicks and because I did not have enough knowledge; right now, if you give me maybe the breeds that I am familiar with, the road runner breeds, if you give me a mixture of them (chicks) I can separate them from a day old.
Now I have the experience. I saw this lady on Facebook, she was selling a particular breed, the night Sussex, it is a white one with some black dots on the neck.
I approached her and she said yes, she had the breed. I paid her for those ones and she gave me the chicks.
I went straight to the rural areas.
Now you are excited, in six months you believe you will be making money.
You are now saying whatever can happen within these first six months, but after these initial months I will start making money.
- “In Conversation With Trevor” is a weekly show broadcast on YouTube.com//InConversationWithTrevor. Please get your free YouTube subscription to this channel. The conversations are sponsored by Nyaradzo Group.
