The ninth child, Elhadji, who lost his mother during childbirth, is now the family patriarch. With the family having abandoned the nomadic lifestyle and settling in Agadez due to a 1970's drought, he was the first to attend school and is fluent in fives languages - Tamashek, Hausa, English, French and German.

In the mid-90s the Tuareg rebellion devastated the tourist business leaving the Koumamas destitute. Elhadji persuaded his family to use their sparse funds for him to go to Lagos (Nigeria) to seek sales. His seven trips in jam-packed minibuses bore fruit. He garnered increased sales on each trip and made valuable contacts with visiting Europeans. By leveraging those contacts, an international business was soon born resulting in numerous trips to Europe and, since 2001, annual trips to the US.

Although he now devotes much of his time to developing and broadening the business, Elhadji never ventures far from his jewelry making roots. When at home in Agadez, he makes time to continue honing his skills making a variety of pieces.

He learned a technique from his father and continues to craft some items like crosses using the ancient "lost wax" method. From shaping softened wax, to applying a clay mold, firing it using a goat skin bellows, shaping the basic cross, to engraving and polishing it until it's worthy of your purchase - his commitment to his craft is evident. On his visits to the US, he gives jewelry making demonstrations that inspire awe in those viewing them.

His goal is to grow the business to provide full-time jobs for the men of the huge extended Koumama family. Elhadji and his wife Kola live in Agadez with their five children. His sons can be found where Elhadji was in his youth ... at their father's knee, learning lessons passed on for many, many generations.