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Entebbe fruit vendor gets new car after NTV story
(Inset) MTN Uganda CEO Sylvia Mulinge gestures as fruit vendor Night Ampurire shows her the old vehicle she was using for her business. In the main photo is the new vehicle MTN Uganda donated to the Entebbe based fruit vendor. PHOTO/HANDOUT
What you need to know:
MTN says the new car will be serviced and insured by itself as one of its fleet.
Until August 27, 2024, she was a woman worn down by life, her spirit bruised by poverty and a relentless struggle to survive through earnings from vending fruits on a Dangerous Mechanical Condition (DMC) vehicle.
Determined to keep pushing forward, life had forced her into selling watermelons and pineapples on the roadside.
Her stand was a dilapidated pickup, barely held together. The vehicle was scanty, filthy, and old that creaking with every movement. Night Ampurire admitted that she always feared her vehicle could take her life even as she always conducted business with her 4-month-old baby strapped to her back.
Ampurire sets up her stall across the road from the Entebbe Market Centre on a daily.
“Each sale is a lifeline, a small hope that I can provide for my four children—their needs, their accommodation, and their education,” she told Monitor.
Her three older children, all aged under 10, help with sales as the days go by, contributing what they can to keep the family afloat. Some visibly looked malnourished.
A general view of the vehicle which Night Ampurire was using to vend fruits. PHOTO/FILE
Ampurire’s routine struggles caught the eye of NTV Uganda reporter Ivan Kamana Walunyolo, who sought to highlight her plight through channels of Nation Media Group Uganda.
According to Walunyolo, he aimed “to showcase Ampurire’s resilience” by partnering with another NTV journalist named Herbert Kamoga, with whom they crafted a brief television feature story that projected the woman’s determination as a local entrepreneur battling odd situations.
Walunyolo says the story, which aired on August 8, took the duo two months to film and craft.
The broadcast eventually ended in the MTN Uganda WhatsApp group with one of the employees at the telecom giant urging the firm’s chief executive officer Sylvia Mulinge to consider helping.
After some deliberation, the telecom decided to gift Ampurire a brand-new Nissan pickup from its fleet.
Since 2015, she had relied on a second-hand Nissan pickup truck, which she purchased at Shs3.5 million through instalments.
“This is a dream come true for me and my family. MTN Uganda has not only given me a new vehicle but also the hope and strength to keep pushing forward. I am deeply thankful for their support, and I am excited about what the future holds for my business,” Ampurire said on Tuesday.
MTN says the new car will be serviced and insured by itself as one of its fleet.
Mulinge said: “NTV’s commitment to sharing stories that matter has not only highlighted the challenges faced by hardworking entrepreneurs but has also paved the way for meaningful support and change. This partnership between the media and community is vital in driving the positive impact we all strive for and it goes to show that indeed, together we are unstoppable.”
The two journalists were also awarded Shs500,000 each for their “impactful work.”
