Under the scorching Mogadishu sun, watermelon is more than just a refreshing treat it can be a good business. Hassan Abdi six started his business slicing watermelons and walking the sunny streets of Mogadishu selling pieces to motorists and passerby.
“It was tough,” he recalls. “I’d walk for hours, carrying my cooler. Some days I made sales, some days I went home with leftovers.” Although the business was promising, the long walks in the unforgiving sun made it difficult for Hassan to make any substantial breakthrough. It was time to change tact.
“One evening after a day’s work,” Hassan says, “I was talking with a friend on possible ways in could get a loan to set up a stall so that I could no longer have to toil whole day.” Hassan learnt from his friend that IBS Bank was offering loans for small scale traders like him.
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