How young Africans learn from older makers

Walk down any busy street in Cotonou, Accra, Kumasi or Onitsha and you will hear a lesson in progress. Not in a school — in a workshop. A welder is showing a 16-year-old how to hold the torch. A hairdresser is correcting a braid. A carpenter is saying, for the fifth time, "measure twice, cut once."

This is apprenticeship, one of the oldest and biggest training systems in Africa. It has no big buildings, no uniforms and very few certificates. Yet it trains more young people for work than many formal technical schools combined.

What makes learning from older makers so powerful — and what needs to change so it works better for young people today?

The biggest school you have never seen

The International Labour Organization (ILO) has studied apprenticeship across Africa for years. It found that in many West African countries, traditional apprenticeship is the main way young people learn a trade. In some countries, apprentices in informal workshops outnumber students in formal technical and vocational schools by several times.

This makes sense when you look at the jobs market. According to the ILO, about 85% of employment in Africa is informal — meaning small businesses, self-employment and work without formal contracts. If most jobs are in workshops, markets and small shops, then most training happens there too.

About 85% of employment in Africa is informal. (ILO, Women and Men in the Informal Economy: A Statistical Picture, 2018) What it means: most young people who learn a trade learn it from a master in a small business, not in a classroom.

How a traditional apprenticeship works

The details change from country to country, but the pattern is familiar:

• A family finds a master (a "patron" or "patronne") in a trade: tailoring, hairdressing, mechanics, carpentry, welding, electrical work.
• They agree on terms. Often the family pays a fee and brings gifts — sometimes a drink, sometimes fabric, sometimes a chicken who did not agree to any of this.
• The apprentice works and learns for two to four years, starting with simple tasks (sweeping, fetching, holding) and moving to real client work.
• At the end, there is a "liberation" or graduation ceremony. The apprentice receives a certificate from the master or the trade association and can open a workshop.

In Benin, Togo and other francophone countries, the "libération" ceremony is a proud family moment, sometimes with music and speeches. It says: this young person is now a professional.

Joke break: Every apprentice in history has asked the same question in month one: "When do I get to touch the machine?" And every master has answered: "After you learn to sweep properly." Somewhere, a very clean workshop floor holds the secret of all African craftsmanship.

The Igbo apprenticeship system: a business school without walls

One of the most studied examples is the Igbo apprenticeship system in south-eastern Nigeria, known as "Igba Boi" or "Igba Odibo." A young person lives and works with an established trader for several years. At the end, the master "settles" them — giving money, stock or a shop so they can start their own business.

Researchers and business writers have called it one of the largest business incubators in the world. It helped build huge trading hubs such as the Onitsha Main Market, often described as one of the largest markets in West Africa. The idea is clever: the master shares customers and knowledge, the apprentice gives years of loyal work, and the community gains a new business instead of a competitor who has nowhere to go.

"Until the lion learns to write, tales of the hunt shall always glorify the hunter." — African proverb, often quoted by Chinua Achebe

That proverb reminds us why these systems deserve more attention. For a long time, official reports ignored workshops because they did not look like "real" education. Now economists are studying them closely.

What older makers teach that books cannot

Why does learning from an experienced maker work so well?

• Tacit knowledge. Some skills cannot be written down. How hard to pull a thread. How an engine sounds when something is wrong. The right moment to take bread out. You learn this by watching and doing.
• Real customers. Apprentices see real problems: a client who wants her dress by Friday, a car that must leave today. That pressure teaches fast.
• Business habits. Pricing, bargaining, keeping clients happy, buying materials. A workshop is a mini business school. Our guide How to price creative work without guessing covers the same lessons for designers and artists.
• Character. Punctuality, patience, respect and honesty — often taught with strong words and long silences.

Psychologists call this "situated learning" — learning inside a real community of practice. The researchers Jean Lave and Etienne Wenger studied apprentices, including tailors in Liberia, and showed how newcomers move from the edge of a community to its centre by doing real, small tasks first.

The problems: long hours, no pay, no certificate

Apprenticeship is powerful, but it is not perfect. Common problems include:

• Very long training periods, sometimes with little new learning in the final years.
• Low or no pay for apprentices, even when they do real client work.
• Few girls in "male" trades like welding and mechanics, and few boys in hairdressing or tailoring.
• Certificates that are not recognised outside the local trade association.
• Old techniques. A master may not know new tools, digital design or safety standards.

The ILO and many governments now support "upgraded" or "dual" apprenticeships. In Benin, the Certificat de Qualification aux Métiers (CQM) and the Certificat de Qualification Professionnelle (CQP) were introduced to recognise skills learned in workshops, combining time with a master and some training in a centre. Similar reforms exist in Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire and Tanzania.

When young people teach the old masters

Here is the twist: learning now runs in both directions.

A young apprentice might show her master how to post designs on Instagram, take payments by mobile money or use a WhatsApp Business catalogue. The master shares 30 years of craft; the apprentice shares 3 years of smartphone life. Both win.

This is sometimes called "reverse mentoring." In the fashion world, many Beninese and Ivorian tailors now get clients from social media because a younger person set up the page. If you run a small shop, Digital tools that help small businesses stay organised is a good next step.

Real people keeping skills alive

Across the continent, some makers have turned teaching into a mission:

• In Benin, the royal appliqué workshops of Abomey — families such as the Yemadje — have passed on the art of Fon appliqué tapestries for generations. These colourful cloth panels once told the history of the kings of Dahomey. Today, workshops still train young people and sell to visitors. We explore this in The makers preserving everyday craft traditions.
• In Ghana, kente weaving villages such as Bonwire in the Ashanti Region continue to train young weavers.
• In Malawi, William Kamkwamba built a wind turbine from scrap as a teenager using a library book and help from local tinkerers. His story, "The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind," shows how learning from what is around you can change a life. See more makers in African makers who teach what they know.

How to make apprenticeship work better

If you are a parent, a master or a young person, here are practical ideas:

For families:

• Agree on a written plan: what will be learned, how long, and what the apprentice will be able to do at the end.
• Visit the workshop regularly. Check safety.

For masters:

• Teach step by step, and say what the next step is.
• Pay a small allowance once apprentices do client work. It builds loyalty.
• Register with a trade association or a recognised certification programme.

For young apprentices:

• Keep a skills notebook. Write each new technique and date.
• Take photos of your best work to build a portfolio.
• Learn the business side: prices, suppliers, customer care.

For governments and NGOs:

• Recognise workshop skills with certificates that employers trust.
• Offer short courses for masters on safety, new tools and teaching methods.
• Encourage girls into every trade. See The women building new paths into science for similar lessons.

Why this matters for Africa's future

Africa has the youngest population in the world. The United Nations estimates the median age on the continent is under 20. Every year, millions of young people enter the job market, and the African Development Bank has noted that only a small share find formal wage jobs.

That means workshops will remain one of the continent's biggest training systems for decades. If we make them fairer, safer and more modern, we unlock the skills of a whole generation.

"Knowledge is like a garden: if it is not cultivated, it cannot be harvested." — African proverb (Guinea)

A quick self-check for apprentices

If you're an apprentice right now, ask yourself these five questions every three months:

• What can I do today that I could not do three months ago?
• Which client job did I finish on my own?
• Do I know what my materials cost and what the final price is?
• Have I photographed my best work?
• What is the next skill I need, and who can teach it to me?

If you can't answer the first question, it's time for an honest, polite conversation with your master. Good masters respect apprentices who ask to learn more.

Respect the teacher in the workshop

Next time you pick up a dress from a tailor or your moto from a mechanic, remember: there may be a young person in the back learning the same skill. The older maker is not just running a business. They are running a school.

For more stories about the people who pass on knowledge, visit our People section or read Why local mentors can change a young person's future. And if you are curious about the hidden work behind the things we buy, read The hidden work behind an African made product.

Questions

What is informal apprenticeship?

It is when a young person learns a trade by working with an experienced master in a small business, usually agreed by families and not run by a school.

How long does an apprenticeship last in West Africa?

Commonly two to four years, depending on the trade and the agreement with the master.

What is the Igbo apprenticeship system?

A system in south-eastern Nigeria where young people work for an established trader for several years and are then "settled" with money or stock to start their own business.