NGO project training women on vocational skills in Katlang

PESHAWAR: A project titled “Female Youth Empowerment through Marketable Skills Training” under the National Integrated Development Association (NIDA-Pakistan) has trained 20 women in tailoring and embroidery while the training of another 20 women is underway in Katlang tehsil of Mardan district.

A press release said the project was funded by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) under Small Grants and Ambassador Fund Programme (SGAFP) in Shamozai Union Council of Katlang.

The aim of the project is to empower 80 marginalised women through marketable skills training in Advanced Boutique Tailoring and Hand/ Machine Embroidery in the vocational centre of Shamozai.

The NIDA-Pakistan, with the financial support of Japan Embassy Islamabad, constructed the centre.

The initiative is meant to improve social and economic conditions of 80 girls by imparting them vocational and entrepreneurial skills and to find market for their products to enable the beneficiaries to fend for themselves and financially support their families.

The beneficiaries are identified by NIDA social mobilisation team in consultation with local women committees in the four villages, i.e. Chappalabad, Matta, Pilagi and Shamozai.

Among the 40 selected females of the maiden batch, 20 each were trained in tailoring and embroidery. The training of the first 20 girls group in tailoring started in November 2017 and completed on January 31, 2018. The second training in tailoring and embroidery was started on February 1, 2018 and will be completed by the end of April next.

The trained girls were provided training consumables, manuals and tool kits, and a travel allowance of Rs3,900.

The trained girls are provided with complete toolkit of non-consumable items to enable them to prepare their own products and sell in the market arranged by the project developers. The Skill Development Council, a government entity, will issue certificates to the beneficiaries. The certificate will help them in getting employment in public and private sector.

Shazia Bibi, a trainee from an underprivileged family, said the skills she would learn during the training would help her support the poor family financially.

“My husband is disabled and unable to work and look after the family. We face immense hardships to manage our domestic budget. This opportunity to get vocational training in hand/machine embroidery means a lot to me. With this training, I will be able to support my family financially and earn a decent livelihood not only for me but my entire family. With these skills, I would not be dependent on others anymore. The other good thing is that the beneficiaries can do it all at their home and don’t need to go to a boutique or any other workplace.”

She said that before joining the training, she could only knit a few stitches but “now I learned a lot more such as ribbon work, thread work, mirror work, crushed work and machine embroidery. Learning these skills is not only my aspiration but my dire need.”

“I am going to establish a one room centre at home in future and start training the young girls interested to learn these skills. This will not only help me support my family financially but also help the intending girls to learn vocational skills,” she added.

Humaira Bibi, another trainee from Matta village of Shamozai Union Council, said: “My father is an odd-jobber and his earnings are not sufficient to fulfill the family’s basic needs. I came to know about this vocational centre during the visit of NIDA-Pakistan team to our village and I availed the opportunity to get trained in embroidery.” She said she had learnt many things like pattern tracing on a fabric, colour combinations and selection, hand embroidery stitches, machine embroidery stitches and crushed work.

The trainees’ products will be exhibited at district and provincial levels for promotion and finding a market where these products will be sold. A two-day exhibition will be organised at the district level in Mardan and at provincial level in Peshawar in the mid of April next.

This event would provide an opportunity to the trainees to interact with visitors, vendors/garment shop owners and sell their products as well as establish linkages for future business opportunities. NIDA Pakistan will facilitate these women in their linkages development.