Slowly and gradually, women in Sindh are taking little steps towards empowerment. This week, You! takes a look at a vocational training centre in Ghotki....
Slowly and gradually, women in Sindh are taking little steps towards empowerment. This week, You! takes a look at a vocational training centre in Ghotki...
Located in the Sindh province, Ghotki was established as a separate district in 1983. Before that it was a part of the Sukkur district. Ghotki is also a border district between the northern Sindh and Punjab provinces. Despite being an industrial area with three gas fields and forty cotton-ginning factories, sadly this district still has a stronghold of feudal and tribal influences. And, it is due to this that the women of Ghotki are mostly denied of their fundamental rights. In an area where a woman is not allowed to step out of her house alone, the chances of empowering them is a far-fetched idea.
However, it's quite heartening to see that various organisations are taking initiatives to educate and empower the women of Ghotki district. One such example is of Mehran Skill Development Centre, run by Village Development Organisation (VDO) -since 1993 - in the midst of the city, where hundreds of women are enrolled for technical education. This training project, started around 2 years ago, is funded by the USAID, which emphasises on skill development of women especially in developing countries.
The centre is currently training 150 females in technical areas of work and is providing skill development in three areas -garments (sewing/stitching on machines); handmade or machine embroideries and beautician training course. Out of the 150 women, 50 are enrolled in garments stitching, 80 are learning handmade and machine embroidery (40 covering each area), while 20 are engaged in the beautician course. In the past, the organisation has trained around 210 candidates under the supervision of professional female instructors.
In a bid to know more, this scribe paid a special visit to Mehran Skill Development Centre in Ghotki. Upon reaching, I saw hundreds of women engaged in learning and honing their basic skills. Most of them had their faces covered with scarves, but were ready to answer my queries. And much to my surprise some of them responded quite confidently. Read on to find out how some of these women are working hard towards making their lives better.
Ms Meena is one of the many women who recently completed stitching work from the training centre. "Before joining this centre, I did not have any knowhow of sewing or stitching. But soon I learnt the basics. Over here, not only have I learnt sewing, but I have become an expert in designing shirts and trousers. And the best part is that now I can help my family financially as well. Currently, I am earning Rs 200 to Rs 300 per day," shares Meena.
Similarly, Shahnaz and Sabra have also benefitted from the sewing/stitching course. According to Shahnaz, after receiving the training, she is earning a decent amount. "Initially nobody would pay more than Rs 300 for an entire suit. But now that I have the professional training, not only am I getting more orders but the clients also pay accordingly," adds Shahnaz. On the other hand, Sabra landed with the order of sewing school uniforms as soon as she completed her stitching course and is quite content that she is able to help out her family financially.
After Mehran Skill Development Centre, I visited the home of some women, including Megha Bai, who had already completed the training courses. Megha Bai belongs to the religious minority Marwari. She is really happy with her training and sews 1 to 2 suits per day.
The stories cited above are just a few examples of how things are changing for these hardworking women. However, it was not an easy task for many of them to get permission from their families. So, the organisation decided to announce the training courses through advertisement on the local FM radio. They also made their workers visit door to door for the sake of convincing the family members to allow their women to take active part in the programme.
According to chief executive of VDO, Ali Hassan Maher, “In the first phase, we tried to focus on training girls from religious minorities, mainly because they were the most neglected lot. In order to gain the trust of families, I involved the women of my family in the programme. I felt this was important because we wanted to change the mindsets. It was indeed a challenge but we didn't give up," he explains.
Aneela Yasmeen, a diploma holder in machine stitching from Punjab and teacher at Mehran Skill Development Centre enunciates, "It is against the family traditions to allow females to leave the comfort of their homes. But with the help of VDO, this obstacle was overcome. And now that these girls are here, their enthusiasm and will to learn is commendable."
Regarding the issue, Parveen, who has learnt machine embroidery from the centre, states, "This programme is a ray of hope for many women as it provides a platform to learn a skill that will be beneficial in the long run. Even though, it was quite a feat to get permission from our families, we are making the most of this opportunity and taking small steps towards improving our lives."
Shakeela Jiskani, who has been associated with VDO for the past three years and works as a social mobiliser, states, "I was supposed to bring 150 women but instead I brought more than 300. Some of them didn't have any difficulty, while others had to face a lot of hurdles before coming here. Even the male members of their families visited the premises to see what kind of working environment we were providing."
Rubeena Ali, working with VDO since 2010, has been engaged in women empowerment activities. "It is very hard for women to go out and work. Being the first female in my family to complete my masters, I faced a lot of problems. All my family members disowned me and I had to marry outside the family," she says.
Besides getting permission to get enrolled in the programme, another hindrance was the unavailability of legal documents. "The age limit of the women enrolled in the programme ranges from 18 to 40 years. But because they did not have CNIC, birth certificate, Form B, or domicile, it was difficult to confirm their ages. So, they had to coordinate with the district government and then with NADRA for the processing of their documents. Apart from technical training, they have been provided with awareness regarding their rights including their right to vote and the good news is that now majority of them cast votes in the local government election," informs Zubair Hussain.
With women having almost 50 per cent share in the income, this programme is helping these women earn a decent living. Along with stitching and embroidery, appliqué work on traditional Sindhi rally is also being taught at the centres. These rallies are then sold at some exhibitions for Rs 20,000 and bed sheets with appliqué work are sold up to Rs 10,000 at the exhibits conducted by the centre.
Moreover, the organisation offers market linkage along with the training. "Majority of these women are earning Rs 4,000 to 8,000 per month. This has not only helped in improving their home affairs but now their children are going to schools. Our organisation has also made agreements with some of the top institutions in the city to provide free education to women, who couldn't afford going to any educational establishment otherwise," concludes Ali Hassan.
