Oketch kicked out poverty with wooden flasks

When you meet Quinto Aketch an instructor at Lugogo Vocational Institute in Kampala, he will advise you to embrace hands on skills to kick unemployment.

Oketch says that if youth changed their mindset of thinking vocational institutes are places for failures; many would not go job hunting.

He notes that vocational skills are hands on and once a person is equipped with them, it is just a matter of being innovative and money comes in.

A carpenter by profession, Oketch teaches carpentry students, but he also makes his own carpentry items that he earns from.

He says making wooden flasks is one of his latest innovation that has greatly earned him income.

How he makes the wooden flasks

"I buy all the materials that I need, before I embark on making the wooden flask. These among others include, timber, nails, glue, cotton and steel plates," says Oketch.

"After that I cut the timber into preferred shapes to make a size of the flask that my client would have ordered for," he adds.

He then starts joining the timber with glue and nails in order to achieve what he intends to make.

However, he has to make a vacuum and a cylinder just like that in other flasks that we know.

He also has to leave space in between the vacuum and the cylinder. It is in between that space that the cotton is placed to enable the flask perform its function of keeping food warm or cold.

After making the wooden flask, he also has to make the cover which he seals with an aluminum plate to protect the wood.

"Wood is highly porous and when it gets in touch with water it swells and fails to perform its function," says Oketch.

Before he puts his flasks on display for sell, he paints it to make it more attractive so that clients can fall in love with it. The price range is between sh 300000-700000.

How it works

Oketch explains that just like any other flask, a wooden flask keeps food warm.

Oketch notes that people get shocked when they are told about the prices because people's attitude towards skills acquired in vocational institutes is still negative, yet items made out of such skills are expensive.

However, he says many people have started appreciating vocational skills and they have enrolled.