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Income Generation through Training

by Dr Mohammad Habibur Rahman
Bangladesh w expert encing rapid socioeconomic change marked bv increasing rates of landlessness. unemployment and impoverishment. Among the poor the plight of rural women Is harder Women are subfect to different types and degrees of social and patriarchal control and exploitation. The rigid division of labour by sex has resulted in a highly segregated labour market. The special risks for those destitute women, who seek work in such a segregated labour market structure. are that women s wages are lower than men s. and more critically, the demand for female labour Is lower than the demand for male labour In such a condition in rural economy, selfrmploymerit for women is a way out from the persisting problem of unemployment and underpayment, an approach that has recently gathered momentum among the non government organisations tNGOs) in Bangladesh.
Tailoring Training
Kangpur and Dinajpur regions, the Rangpur Dinajpur Rural Service (RDRS) working area manifest the features of I tie most Impoverished condition both spatially and otherwise. Spatial Inequality coupled with class disparity in income, i oncentration of land (three quarters of the households are luncUonally landless), mass illiteracy (80 per cent), problem oi access Into government ser-vn es. poor Infrastructure, unemployment and the problem of women s empowerment have aggravated the rural living conditions In the region. Faced with this rural reality. RDRS felt long ago that self-reliance among the poor is a pre-condition for a sustainable development in the region and indeed in Bangladesh. With this development view, where women’s empowerment is the central issue. RDRS offered tailoring training to 80 destitute women m two of its Comprehensive Project Units (CPU) —Lalmonl-rhat and Plrganj. Starting in October 1993, the. Tailoring Training Project (TTP) continued until September 1994.
A study was conducted in September 1994 in two selected project areas of RDRS with a view to measuring the impact of the project on employment opportunities, in-
come generation and other socio-psychological development of the clients. The project operated with 80 destitute women participants who come from 23 unidns In 8 thanas under 2 RDRS CPUs. As the women are living in their respective villages, it was not feasible to Interview all 80 participants of the project. The study therefore selected 16 participants applying stratified sampling technique.
An impressionistic view from the field survey data shows that the TTP is a re markable success in terms of skill development, employment opportunity, income im provement. empowerment and socio-psychological development of the target population. It also made some success in motivating other destitute womeH/adolescent girls of the localities and transferring to them some degree of tailoring skill. It was seen in both CPU
areas of the project that the trained tailors were working very efficiently both at home and in the market place. Out of 16 trainees. 12 are running their business from their homes and 4 have rented shops In the market place in Lalmonirhat and Bochaganj.
A Happy Face of the Rural
Society
There are evidences from the two study areas that the destitute women-turned trained tailors have made a breakthrough in generating income. It does not matter how . slowly the women tailors will come to the limelight of 'development', but the fact of the matter is they are begin-n^ig to change the pace of, rural economy. This dynamism will explicitly determine the course of many informal sectors In the rural economy and thereby Influence the socio-
cultural change in the society. The projected benefits of the, TTP are systematically taking place as the beneficiaries themselves are realising that It very well serves their economic and socio-psychological interests. Although the project has yet to yield long lasting and definitive results, but given the Improvements that took place, there can be little doubt that in the long run the target population-will benefit from this. In the short term though, the indications are
. very promising.
Some tailors have purchased some amount of agricultural land. It was not realistically possible for them to even think about it before they Joined the training project. Similarly. 7 of the same group of women have paid lease money (in between Taka 1000-3000) to mortgage in farming land. Three of the women have even given money on credit.
Six women have recently spent from their own earnings an av erage Taka 200 each to re place their traditional latrine with a hygienic latrine Another group of 5 women have contributed an average Taka 700 to Improve housing conditions, i.e. tin roof/new thatch.
Some were able to purchase furniture/radto/uiensils for their homes. Others have in creased the number of cows, goats and poultry. Thirteen women are now able to provide their household members bet ter and nutritious food. A total of 5 women have also success fully sent their but-of-school' or dropout of school' children back to their schools. It was checked with other 11 Inter viewed women arid found that their chlklren/brothers/sisters were going to schools regu larly. Another group of 10 women are able to provide better clothing, shoes and school supplies to their school-going children All 6 show a picture of Improvement In the health care of their household members.
Empowerment seem to have Increased among these women. Their level of social awareness has also Improved hand In hand. Spme of them replied that their awareness development Is leading to establish their rights and power both at home and In the society, thus enabling them to play an essential role in their household matters including children's education and so forth. However, there still re mains the problem of harassment and social acceptance. In certain cases, the problem has been so excruciating that the unmarried girls like Rebeka and Sabina from Dhantala (Bochaganj thana) and Matijpur (Bochaganj thana) village respectively had to cease their business in the village market and return back to their homes. The problem.was not created by trie elderly mem bers of the community but by the Ideal unemployed youths. These boys taunted and teased the young girls during their business hours. NGOs in Bahgladesh should make some efforts to mobilise these idle young men to do something better.
The writer is Assistant Professor. Department of Public Administration. Untveh sity of Dhaka.