ClementineAma Wottor: Stepping Out of the Shadows

Seamstress · Entrepreneur · Mother

Clementine seated at her sewing machine — Photo 06 · DSCF5556

Fifteen years of waiting

For more than 15 years, Clementine Ama Wottor had the skills to make a living as a seamstress but lacked the resources to establish a workshop of her own.

After completing her apprenticeship, Clementine took small tailoring jobs from her home, doing what she could to keep her skills alive. But the work was not enough to support her family, so she also worked as a labourer to make ends meet. These were difficult years, particularly as she struggled to provide for her children and keep them in school. Despite the challenges, she never gave up on the idea of having her own business.

Clementine working beneath her roadside shelter — Photo 07 · DSCF5592

The loan

An opportunity came through IADES, a Togo-based economic development organisation, which provided Clementine with a loan of 50,000 CFA francs, approximately £65. She used the money to hire a carpenter to build a simple roadside shelter where she could work. It wasn't much, but having a visible place in her neighbourhood meant customers could find her, and she could begin building the business she had trained for so many years earlier.

“The day I received the loan I felt overwhelming joy,” she recalls. “It helped me step out of the shadows.”

Clementine tending her sewing machine — Photo 08 · DSCF5569-2

Clementine ironing patterned fabric — Photo 10 · DSCF5608

Detail of folded patterned fabrics — Photo 11 · DSCF5616

Clementine smiling behind her sewing machine — Photo 15 · DSCF5638

Clementine helping her children study outside — Photo 02 · DSCF5507-2

The Future

Clementine’s ambitions go beyond her own business. Her eldest son recently finished first in his class and dreams of becoming a pilot. For Clementine, his achievement is a source of pride and a reminder of why she has worked so hard to provide her children with an education. The opportunities she hopes to create for them are as important as the success of her own business.

“My dream is to open a haberdashery and build a home where I can live with my children and welcome my parents.”

Clementine Ama Wottor standing outside her home in Lomé — Photo 01 · DSCF5518-2

Visibility. Independence. Possibility.

For Clementine, success isn't measured by the size of her business. It's about being able to make a living from her own skills, provide for her family and create opportunities for her children. After years of waiting, she finally has a place to begin.