BSS, Rangpur :
The cotton crafts value chain programme of the ‘Samridhhi’ Project has created sustainable employments for 25,000 extremely poor people, mostly distressed women,making them self-reliant in the northern region.
The project beneficiaries have been earning well through mini garment cotton crafts, handloom and embroidery works to lead solvent life side by side contributing to the rural uplift and economy.
Three Regional Offices of HELVETAS Swiss Intercooperation under the ‘Samridhhi’ project have been assisting the beneficiaries since 2010 in the northern region with financial assistance of the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation.
Under the project assistance and cooperation between private sectors and local entrepreneurs, various value chain systems, including cotton crafts, have developed opportunities for sustainable jobs and income generation activities locally.
The project has strengthened the local service providing systems enhancing capacity of local service providers and their associations and collaboration among the government agencies, private entrepreneurs, companies and organisations. Under cotton crafts value chain programme, 25,000 people of 5,555 extremely poor households of all sixteen northern districts in the region have achieved self- reliance through local employments in their own areas.
Private sector entrepreneur Abu Bakar Siddik has set up mini factory ‘Students Care Garments’ at Dimla town in Nilphamari to promote cotton craft value chain programme through skill development of rural women and establishing rural production centres. More than 450 trained men and women have been working there and its other eight garments production centres set up at different areas of Dimla and Domar upazilas by women entrepreneurs after getting training from ‘Students Care Garments.’
The trained men and women have been producing quality school dresses like tie, batch, bags, pants, shirts for male and female students at ‘Students Care Garments’ and also at the other eight production centres.
Proprietor of ‘Students Care Garments’ Abu Bakar Siddik told BSS that the products are being supplied to the ‘Students Care Garments’ from where those are being marketed for students of 1,500 schools in 27 upazilas of 13 districts throughout the country.
Besides, the trained men and women have been producing other garment products at these centres for marketing through local traders and entrepreneurs with the assistance of the cotton craft value chain programme of the project.
Like other garments producer women, Basiron, 46, Rasheda, 36, Lipa, 22, Rafia, 39, Ambia, 36, Samina, 33, and Minaki, 30, said that they are earning Taka 5,500 to 6,500 every month now to lead solvent life with their family members and children.
Similarly, Proprietors Hazrat Ali of ‘Bhai Bhai Handloom’ of Baliandangi upazila in Thakurgaon, Yahhiya Iqbal of ‘Azmal Sajghor and Iqbal Zorry House’ of Syedpur in Nilphamari and Saiful Alam of ‘Soft Tech Handicrafts’ of Debiganj upazila in Panchagarh narrated their successes.
