 Welcome back to the YouTube channel, it's your favorite village boy Mr. Gainababy and I'm back again with another video from South Sudan. I know you all have missed me and you all are expecting new videos from Somalia and Somalia. Wait for it, I will definitely be bang with bangus, just chill but you know what, I still got videos from South Sudan and I have to realize that we've been so busy working so hard to bring you guys fresh content but hey, the main reason why I went to South Sudan was to promote small businesses in South Sudan. You know South Sudan is actually a young country so the people in that country who have started business are just young so all businesses in South Sudan are definitely small businesses and I was so impressed to see what young people are doing to change the narratives of their own country so hey, do me a favor, like the video, share and subscribe as we talk to the youngest CEA who decided to establish the Shebaara business in the country. If I didn't come to this country, I would think that it's only Ghana that makes Shebaara. Well now you know better, I also thought that in the first place. Really? Yeah, but we do have plenty of Shebaara and plenty of Shea trees. It's just that sometimes the preparation styles differ. Oh okay, so like you make everything in here? Yes, from scratch. All we do is to import, I mean bring the nuts from the lakes region, which is where we get our names. But is it also in South Sudan? Yes, in South Sudan. Yes, the lakes region is in Bahar Ghazal so where the Nile crosses South Sudan and then we bring everything here and do the production all the way here. Wow, who are the people who does the production? Well currently I use the wives of soldiers because in South Sudan wives are usually housewives. And their husbands are the ones that usually work and salaries don't always come. So now in this area soldiers live here so I just use their wives and bring in the little storage facilities here. Oh, not inspirational but let me know, my name is Maya, you never told me your name. My name is Estella. Estella, born and raised in Jeba? Yes, no, not born and raised in Jeba, I was born here and then moved to East Africa of course during the crisis. So I moved to East Africa, did part of my education in East Africa and then moved on to my bachelor in Malaysia and then my master's in China and then I came back here. You went to China? Yeah I did. I was also based in China, you know that? Yeah. You speak Chinese? No. Basic Chinese like Ni Hao, how to get some food, that's pretty much it. And why you have to come back here, you should have stayed in Malaysia or China? Well first of all this is home, there's no feeling like just being home. I remember that whenever I'd come back from either China or Malaysia, there's that feeling at the airport that you feel like I'm going to go back home because when I'd come back I don't necessarily come directly to South Sudan because we don't have flights that come in here. I would come to maybe Uganda or Kenya and then transit. But that feeling of being in Africa and just being home was amazing and I don't think there's anything that meets that. It really inspired you to start a shea butter company in here. So aside from me using the shea butter myself, because previously I used to get it from Northern Uganda and I used to take it to school with me and whenever it would finish I would just send for more. And then I came back here and one time I asked my grandfather to smell the shea butter that I had and he said this was shea butter. But then I had seen it here before, the difference was in preparation styles. The one that they used to prepare here, they would darken, roast too much and then it would become dark. And even the smell was a bit too much to use on your skin. And so I had some looked on YouTube and then I was able to see how it was prepared. I got one lady at that time that was able to do the pounding and the grinding for me and then they got out some oil for me and it was perfect. So I started using it myself, I'd give it to my friends as gifts, my family as gifts and then slowly when I saw that everybody, I mean people slowly liked it and then we moved on to producing it at Ladsgate. So which means you really defined the use of shea butter in Sassida? I think I did, I think I did. Because now we have a bunch of companies that are actually dealing in shea butter. I'm not sure if they produce here but I know that there's people that are actually into shea butter now. I mean can you take us around a little bit where you keep your nuts and stuff? Yes, yes, yes. So this is our little village, I don't know if it works well as the village you used to, but this is our little village. So partly the women leave in some of these to-colds, we call them to-colds. And then this is our working space. So this is our working space and this is the machine that we use for- Oh okay, you are even making the work easier. Yes, because before they used to pound and grind, we do have the motor in there, they used to pound and grind but then it's too much work and they also do not produce so much in a day. So when the demand grew, we saw it was better for them to have a machine because then they are able to produce efficiently without being tired the whole day. So yeah, that's pretty much it. So come with me. This is right here. So because the space is a little small and we're a growing little company, we saw our water here and then we just used the space for most of the work. Here are the nuts. So these are nuts that have sort of already been sorted and dried and we just keep them here. They have a very good shelf life so we don't have to worry about whether or not they're going to get spoiled. As long as it's properly dried, then it's fine. Now these are the nuts that have not yet been shelled. This is the process before you get to this. So this is the seed that's inside the fruit. When you get the fruit, it's green. Then you eat the fruit, then this comes out. This is dried and then shelled because if you can see there is... So if you hit this a little bit, I'll just maybe do. So from that, that's the nut that is this. We have a share fruit. Yes, there's a fruit. It's green in color. We don't have it here because they also have a very low shelf life. As soon as it's plucked from the tree, you must almost eat it instantly. If you don't, then it doesn't last long. Yeah, a lot. But is it difficult to get this nut in here? No, actually no. Because God has blessed us, they grow by themselves. You don't have to water them, nobody plants them, they just grow. So they mainly grow in South Sudan, they mainly grow in the lakes region, which is around here, and in some parts of the equatoria. But I source this from the lakes. Yeah, and then so we store partly the nuts here and also some of our produce here. Now the way that this structure is made, the mud, because South Sudan is hot, it helps us keep the butter in shape. Because if you put it outside right now, it could literally melt. I'll just take you through. You can even tell that this has been produced a while ago, but because of the heat, you can tell that it's... If you can look here, the oil is coming up because of the heat. Can I touch it? Yeah, now this came from a fridge. So you can see that it's a bit harder than that that was solidified naturally. So it's all good. Yeah, so then we move from here, we have the preparation. So this is mainly like the storage room, where we keep stuff, we keep our utensils. And then the women do the preparation outside because of the heat of the fire. We'd rather they stay and cook in a place that they can get some air conditioning. Yeah, so this machine, because of the way that it works, if you can tell, it has already made holes. So this cannot be put inside because of its movement. And also it needs to constantly be watered so that it stays cool and it's able to do the production easily. So yeah, this is chill spot and the cooking area. Yeah, now we have some of the butter, some of the nuts that have been roasted and grinded. Now, these are ready to be put into the boiling process, which is where you get to extract the oils. To boil them. Yeah, you have to boil the pest in order to get the oils out. How long? Oh, it takes about an hour, an hour, 30 minutes for the oil to start coming on top. And then you can already start putting. Dinariket, come back to the kitchen. Bye. I help you. Okay. Yes, so the water has to be really hot. It has to be really boiled. Then they'll start putting in the paste. And you can see we basically use sticks because we want something longer because once it starts boiling, it starts to, what is it called, do they call it bubbling? Yeah. I don't know, it starts to bubble up and yeah, like that. And then it could easily get on the skin. So they'll do that for another hour or so until the oils start coming on top. Yeah, once the oils come on top, it's ready to be cooked. Let's see if it's ready. Can I check it out? Yes, I can. This is so hot, like. It is, it is. So just imagine if we had to produce this inside. Yeah. Yeah, it would be crazy. You actually create an employment. Yes, I would love to think that that's what I do. So here, here we have eight women because first we started with two, about two women and then we moved on to eight women because the demand was slowly growing. The locals were slowly trying to understand the importance of sheer butter and all the benefits that it has. So we moved on to eight women here, but we have about 32 women in the lakes region that actually do the collection of the mats and then we go ship them in here. So now from that, once the oil has, you know, come to the top, the contents that go to the bottom, the residue basically goes to the bottom and this is what the oil looks like. Is this sheer butter oil? Yeah, this is sheer butter oil. When it's hot, there's something about sheer butter oil. When it's hot, it's a bit darkish. Once it cools down because there's still residue that gets to the bottom, then it clears out. It becomes. It starts from red to yellow. Yes, yes. Once it's solidified, it becomes yellow. Is it like they make shabbat at the northern part of Ghana? I've never seen one before. This is my first time seeing this in South Sudan. I look like a villager, man. You're probably in a village that doesn't produce it. Yeah, but that's pretty much it. So we do have a storage on the other side where we do the final packaging and the production and we'll probably go there. Now this we put some hot because we put it in the fridge. So it's solidified and it became hard that you could not scoop it. We put some hot oil on it too, yeah. How did you sell this? This we sell at 4500, which should be the equivalent of $8. You ship it abroad? We haven't started shipping abroad, but we're working on that currently because we're now dealing with our standards. Getting the document from the Bureau of Standards, once we get that, we'll be able to ship it out. That's it. Yes. Yeah. So that is in the lemongrass flavor. Everything is made here. Yes. The only thing that we get from abroad is the packaging because obviously we do not have factories in South Sudan yet that are able to produce for us such packages. And do you think it's worth it to invest in such business? More than you can imagine. First and foremost, the satisfaction that comes from knowing that you're changing lives, you know, even if in a small scale, but you're changing lives somehow because these are people that are used to being housewives if they're able to make the little for themselves. When a woman makes money, most of it goes back to the family. So, yeah, I feel like it is, it's perfect and we could do better. If you can, maybe you can just have a look at it quickly. You can already see the oils are coming to the top. Already? Yeah. If you can, maybe let's just get a scoop. It's like a peanut butter. Yes, it becomes like a peanut butter. So you can see that what's on top is the oils. Besides the residue, now that's what gets off once it's cooled down. The oil has already started coming. We haven't even been 30 minutes into the cooking. But the longer it takes, the more the oils are maximized. But they have to constantly keep stirring because if they don't stop, you have to be very careful. Be very careful because... Yeah, it's very hot. Yeah. So they have to constantly stir it because if they don't stop, are you going to... I was afraid for your mouth. So they constantly stir it because if they don't, then it holds the fire. And obviously, you've set producing butter that smells burnt. I mean, what was the major challenge establishing this here in Thassida? Well, now for me, the major challenge was the finances because I financed this individually. So it became a bit complicated. If my pocket is empty, then I cannot facilitate this. The other would be in regards to the logistics, bringing the nuts from the lake states all the way till here because sometimes in the rainy season, the roads are flooded. It makes it almost very difficult that when I have to transport them, I have to pay double the price or triple the price that I would use to get the nuts. So yeah, that's one of the challenges. But other than that, I think it's been smooth because, first of all, these women are used to doing the work anyway. They're used to making the shea butter. So it's not a new thing for them. It's not a new thing. It's just the technique that's different from what they're used to making. Yeah, but that's pretty much it. Yeah, even reducing stress, you know, because they used to pound everything with... Yes, yes, I actually haven't showed you the mortar, but they used to use the stone. When we were in Murkaka... So they used to use the stone to grind. The stone? Yeah. Now, that's how they do it locally. So this has replaced the stones and the... the... I think it's called the mortar and pestle. Here we call it dong and this is Murkaka. What does it mean? Yeah, that's the mortar. So we haven't used it in almost forever. They used to grind it manually. Yeah, they used to grind it manually. So just imagine the amount of time that they need to be able to produce shea butter. So before, when they used to manually do the process, they used to take... I think they'd produce about 10 litres in a day. 10 litres after working the whole day. But now they're able to produce about 20-40 litres in a day because we do not want to... to produce... Yeah, it's okay, give me this one. Just see, this is the kind of thing that you put it in. What do you have, Babas? Wow. So to take the whole day to just... We don't have to do it in the morning. So there is a technique that we use to make here when the women are making. Because if you make alone, your hands get tired fast. But then they have a technique where... Can you... I think we have to show you first. Please, what's the flow? So when you do two people, you're not maximising too much of energy on one person and you're speeding the process. They usually do faster than that, but... Go. They transfer it to this place. Yeah, from here, where's the place? Give way to them. From here, because this doesn't do... Yeah, it doesn't grind. It doesn't grind it to be fine. And when it's not finely grinded... No, that is still very much. Yeah, it's still very much. You're supposed to take some time grinding. Yeah, pounding it. And then... When do I get it? Personally. Then they put the paste here and start to grind it. Yeah. After that, they still move on to the process. So the oils are coming. We're starting to maximise the oils now. You can already... Let me ask you. Yeah, yes. We've got so many South Sudanese that live in the diaspora. Yes. That... I feel like it's time for them to come back and be part of the chain that we're looking for on the continent. Yeah. If you have a message for them, what would that message be? I would say that first of all, we are a country that is blessed with a vast number of resources, of natural resources. And there's so much that we can do with it. We cannot all do white-collar jobs. I mean, there's too much for us to do that is not involved in the office because you're creating employment, even for people that are not so educated. And yeah, bringing good for the country. So there's so much that we can do. We should just change our mindset of thinking that everything involves is around the office. And definitely you have a message for younger Africans. Yes. For younger Africans, as Africans, we should stop glorifying the idea that everything good comes from out because we have so many things in here that... I mean, most of the West gets stuff from here. Like, we export Sheba to most of these European countries. Exactly. So there's too much that we can do here to benefit ourselves and also do the greater good for our nation, our continent as a whole. I want to say thank you so much for talking to me, but I think I need to do this to help you. I know you don't export right now, but can it be a favor because I have a whole army who are willing, I don't think, to even be able to produce if they ask you for Sheba. If the demand is there, we can definitely produce. We have too many women. So will you, like, do me a favor, send us how do people find you so that they'll be able to reach out to you? So our social media handles are Aram... Aram underscore where? I think you'll have to write that. Aram underscore where? On both Instagram, Facebook and Twitter. You can just find us there. And we're working on our website as well. It's Aramware.sheabutter. All right. I want to say thank you so much for talking to me. Thank you for coming. And thank you for, you know, being around. Hey, the iron is not hot yet. Hi, guys.