Former prisoner becomes shoemaker

‘I hope that one day I will be able to expand my company and teach others to become great shoemakers.’ James from Tanzania is a former prisoner who is reintegrating into society with the help of Dorcas. During his prison sentence, James learned a trade and thanks to the project, he has hope for a better future.

James lost his parents at an early age and because there was nobody to support him, he didn’t finish school, got to know the wrong people and ended up in jail. Fortunately, that was not the end for James. He became involved in a Dorcas vocational training school where he was taught to fix shoes. ‘Although I was in jail, I wanted to learn something. I never finished school and I knew that, without any education, my chances to live a normal life wouldn’t be very high after prison.’

Currently, James is on parole, which means that he is able to finish his sentence in relative freedom, working as a shoemaker. He also took part in a business training. ‘I learned to be innovative and to respond to market demands. This training has helped me to continue and not give up.’ Now that James is on parole, he still connects with local staff who are able to help him further.

18 September 2017