OMARURU – A jobless father of four at Omaruru, Sakaria Ngatjikalekuwo, has found an alternative way to build a decent house to shelter his family.
The 31-year-old bricklayer with four children and a live-in partner, has decided to construct a brick house out of clay for his family who lives at the 7de Laan informal settlement in Omaruru.
The settlement is home to approximately 400 residents of Omaruru, who cannot afford decent housing.
The informal settlement only has prepaid water points without proper electricity or sanitation.
Ngatjikalekuwo is originally from Opuwo but relocated to Omaruru in the Erongo Region in 2006 in search of greener pastures.
Speaking to New Era, Ngatjikalekuwo said he has been without a job for several months now and he decided to make bricks out of clay to see whether it is strong enough for building purposes.
“I didn’t have any money to buy building material, so I used a bit of cement I had and mixed it with clay. After the bricks dried for a few days, I realised they are just as strong as bricks made of cement and sand,” he explained to New Era.
He collects the clay a few kilometres from his home and with the help of a friend made the bricks.
He also collects water at a nearby pre-paid water point in large containers. All the hard labour and the construction work, he does by himself.
“I cannot sit around and wait for a better job that will enable me to build a decent house for my family. Our forefathers used to build houses out of clay and they lasted for years. Besides, nothing comes on a silver platter,” he stated.
Anyone who wants to assist him with any sort of building material can reach him at 0816114460.