SHEBERGHAN (Pajhwok): A businesswoman in northern Jawzjan province has established a tailoring and rug-weaving workshop, hiring 100 female workers.
The workers of the workshop are happy and want the Islamic Emirate to support their employer to enable her to boost her business and hire more women.
Muqadas Sadat, owner of the workshop in Shiberghan, told Pajhwok Afghan News she set up the business about seven months ago.
She has since hired 40 women in the carpet-weaving branch and 60 in the tailoring section.
Seeking to keep the carpet-weaving industry alive in Jawzjan, Sadat set up the workshop to hire unemployed women and girls.
The women who have lost jobs and girls barred from school are working in her workshop, in addition to poor and professional employees.
Regarding salaries, she said: “Carpet-weaving women are paid on basis of meterage. The tailoring section workers are paid based on their monthly performace.”
Sadat went on to hope, if supported, she would be able to appoint more than 200 other women and girls to her workshop.
The income of these women had improved, she noted, saying enterprising women had found their way to the workshop. If financially supported by NGOs, they would attract more unemployed women and make the work environment more favourable.
Kamila, 60, a worker in the carpet-weaving section, said: “I used to stay home jobless, but now I got a job here and I’m so happy.”
Haunted by severe economic problems and depression, she is thrilled to have overcome her hardships after being hired here.
Wahida, a trainee in the carpet-weaving section, has been working at the workshop for six months. She has learnt weaving and thereby meets her financial needs.
She termed the establishment of such workshops effective in eliminating women’s unemployment and financial problems of families. “I have learnt many things here.”
Shafiqa, an instructor, voiced satisfaction with the establishment of the workshop. She is eking out a decent living for her family.
“I’m a widow. I’m working to make a living for my family, I am very happy and satisfied with my job. I can eke out a living for my three children.”
She went on to urge the government to let other women work and solve their problems in this way.
Marina, another trainee at the workshop, said that she had learnt sewing skills. “My monthly income is 1,000 afghanis. In our family, no one else works except me and my father. I’m happy to work and contribute financially to my family,” she added.
Fatima Nik Rasouli, head of the Women Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Jawzjan, said: “Recently, the number of tailoring workshops has increased in the province.”
She said over the last two years, 6,000 women in Jawzjan had been busy working in tailoring, agriculture and livestock sectors.
“The number of women entrepreneurs is also rising with the passage of each day and they have lately shown more motivation in the field of business and entrepreneurship.
“These women are playing a very valuable role in revenues of their families. They have become a role model for others,” she commented.
