As poverty and unemployment continue to be challenges for many young people in Malawi, some are finding ways to create their own opportunities through skills training and hard work.

In Mpingu, Lilongwe, Aubrey Kanjala is one of those young people. He is a tailor and also a farmer. When you meet him today, he speaks with confidence about how vocational training has helped him shape a more stable life.

Aubrey started with tailoring. It was something he learned and slowly turned into a small business. Over time, the business grew, helping him earn a living. But even with that progress, he always felt something was missing.

“I always had this interest in farming, especially Horticulture,” Aubrey says. “Tailoring was helping me, but I knew I couldn’t rely on only one thing. Life is too uncertain these days. You need more than one source of income.”

That thinking is what led him to Tingathe’s Vocational Training Programme, where he enrolled to study Horticulture. For him, it was not just about learning farming techniques, but about finding another way to survive and grow.

During the training, Aubrey learned practical skills in vegetable production and farm management. He says this is where things started to change in his thinking.

“The training opened my eyes to many opportunities in farming,” he said. “I learned that with proper planning and management, farming can be a profitable business.”

After completing the programme, Aubrey went back to his tailoring business, but he didn’t stop there. He also started putting his new skills into practice by establishing a vegetable farm.

When Tingathe staff visited him, Aubrey had planted Mpiru and Chinese vegetables, which were still in the nursery stage and waiting to be transplanted into the field. He explained that he uses rotational farming, planting different vegetables at different times so that he can always have something growing.

“This is how I try to manage things,” he says. “If I depend on one crop or one business, I can struggle. But if I mix things, then at least I can survive even when one side is slow.”

For Aubrey, this is the main reason he decided to run two businesses at the same time.

“Nowadays, you can’t rely on one business alone,” he adds. “Things change quickly. So I thought it was better to have tailoring and farming together. If one is not doing well, the other can support me.”

Today, Aubrey balances both businesses. Income from tailoring helps support his farming activities, while proceeds from farming provide additional financial security.

He says the biggest change is not just money, but peace of mind.

“Before, I used to worry a lot because I only had one thing to depend on. Now I feel more stable. I can plan better and think about the future,” he says.

Looking back, Aubrey believes vocational training played a big role in opening his mind.

“This opportunity really changed the way I see life,” he says. “It pushed me to think beyond just one skill and see what else I can do.”

He also encourages other young people not to ignore such opportunities.

“Some young people see these programmes and don’t take them seriously. Later, they are the same ones complaining. But I have seen it for myself, these things really help if you are serious,” he says.

Aubrey’s hope is to grow both his businesses in the future. He wants to expand his tailoring work and also develop his farm further. His dream is to have a bigger setup where he can also train other young people who want to learn skills like him.

“I would like to reach a point where I can also help others learn,” he says. “If I can do it, then others can also do it.”

For Aubrey, life is still moving step by step, but he says learning new skills has helped him see a different way of living and earning.