Bid to empower refugees through crafts
Nama Women Advancement Establishment (Nama) has signed its first-ever agreement with UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency to conduct a one-year project to support local and Afghan refugee women in Pakistan.
Nama’s affiliate, Irthi Contemporary Crats Council and UNHCR will be working in partnership to provide artisanal training to skilled and semi-skilled local and Afghan refugee women in Punjab and Islamabad aimed at improving their income-generating capacity.
Some 150 Afghan refugee and Pakistani women will receive training in the crat of weaving. Using the skills, these female artisans will then be guided to produce Emirati-inspired designs.the project comes in line with Irthi Council’s key role to support women in the crats sector and empower them socially and economically through vocational and skills training, and enabling access to market opportunities, leading to the creation of sustainable jobs and incomes.
Rizwan Beyg, an internationally-renowned fashion designer from Pakistan will supervise the quality of artisanal technical training, while UNHCR will conduct the life-skills training.
All those registered with the project will be treated and compensated fairly and ethically, enabling them to support their families.
The MOU was signed by Reem Binkaram, Director of Nama and Ruvendrini Menikdiwela, UNHCR’S representative in Pakistan, in the presence of Erummazheralvie, Senior Advisor in the Executive Office of Her Highness Sheikha Jawaher Bint Mohammed Al Qasimi, Sheikha Hind bint Majed Al Qassimi, Chairperson of Sharjah Business Women Council (SBWC) and Rizwan Beyg. Reem Binkaram remarked, “We are pleased to have signed off on our first collaboration with UNHCR, which will take us closer to achieving Nama’s goal of engaging 10,000 women by 2020.”
She said they have been expanding their efforts to build a strong and far-reaching international partners network that works to empower women in a variety of sectors across the MENASEA region. She further said that the project will help empower hundreds of local and Afghan refugees through the crats, which will enable them to access sustainable livelihoods, and lead to beter self-reliance and increased resilience, and ultimately boost the local economy.