Chronicle Editor
Mashudu Netsianda, Senior Reporter
CLAD in a green work suit, a helmet and a pair of industrial safety shoes, Ms Silibaziso Siziba’s face lights up with a radiant smile as she crawls into the dark corners of a client’s home to fix a leak.
Ms Siziba (28), a Bulawayo plumber has managed to smash the gender stereotype that has dominated the trade for generations.
She has actually gone beyond societal perceptions to create a niche for herself in her chosen career path by opening a plumbing company, Let’s Build Construction.
The youthful plumber was inspired by her brother, who took up the role of parenting following the death of their single parent in 2004, to pursue a career in plumbing.
Today, Ms Siziba is the director of Let’s Build Construction, a Bulawayo-based company that specialises in repairing toilets, leaks, drain, water and sewer pipeline replacement and solar geyser installations.
The company also offers tiling and roofing services.
Let’s Build Construction was registered in 2019 and employs two qualified artisans, a builder and a plumber. So far, they have served more than 100 clients, both individuals and companies in several parts of the country.
“As a female plumber, I believe I am not only making valuable contributions to the field, but also forging a path for other women intending to enter into the field.
I want to change societal misconceptions about women when it comes to trades such as plumbing considered a male domain,” she said.
“We have put flush toilets in several rural areas.
Let’s Build Construction got started because I always wanted to let women and girls know that when you become a tradeswoman, you actually become a superhero since there are not a lot of us doing it.”
In two years’, time, Ms Siziba plans to grow Let’s Build Construction into an all-inclusive home building company that also supplies hardware and other building materials.
“In 2024, my ambition is to build a formidable brand that touches on everything related to home building and also set up a commercial office in town. I use my home in Cowdray Park as an office,” she said.
From her business, Ms Siziba makes an average of US$1 200 per month with figures getting higher depending on the number of clients.
Growing up as an orphan after losing her mother when she was 10 years old, Ms Siziba never got to know her biological father, and she was raised by her brother.
“My brother is the one who played the role of a parent following the death of my mother in 2004.
He is actually the one who inspired me to do plumbing before enrolling at the Bulawayo Polytechnic where I completed a national certificate in plumbing and drain laying,” she said.
Ms Siziba is studying towards a diploma in plumbing and drain laying.
After completing her studies, she intends to pursue a programme in construction engineering technology at university level.
“When I was growing up, I had no self-confidence.
However, the shift happened when I became a plumber and I realised that nothing is more empowering than working with tools,” she said. — @mashnets
Online Reporter