Status of the Jaipur Rugs Foundation WELL project
A year ago we started the funding for the WELL (Women Empowerment Through Livelihoods and Leadership Development) project initiated by the Jaipur Rugs Foundation in India. Together with an anonymous supporter and the individual donations from our community the goal of €20.000 has been achieved. Let us update you about the progression that has been made so far.
Picture taken from the training location in Dhanota
What's the status?
JRF already provided three months of training to thirteen participants in Dhanota Village. This month (March 2022) the next group of sixteen participants will start with the skill development training. The training focuses on developing rug weaving skills among the participants. It aimed to build an entrepreneurial mindset so that the participants can work on their own after finishing the training and not be dependent on the organisation, developing a sustainable livelihood opportunity for them.
The trainees are trained to read the rug design maps so that they can create rugs congruent with the required design. It also includes understanding the basic rug design elements and the colour coding. The training is conducted by experts who also impart information about assessing the quality of the rugs, creating minimal waste and finishing the assignment on time to ensure on-time delivery to the customers.
Picture taken from the training location in Dhanota
Nisha's story
Nisha (see picture below) is one of the young women trained under the JRF skill development program in collaboration with CRF in the village of Dhanota. Her perseverance makes her stand apart. Nisha is both deaf and mute. Her father passed away when she was quite young. Her mother could only manage to provide her with basic education as the educational opportunities for the differently-abled are absent from most Indian villages.
However, none of these obstacles could hold her back from reaching out to the sky. Nisha was enrolled in the skill development program. She managed to learn rug weaving owing to her keenness to learn and perseverance. With the help of her trainers and co trainees, Nisha was able to learn the technicalities of the process. In a village environment, where non-farm livelihood opportunities are minimal and almost non-existent for the differently-abled, she was able to move towards economic independence and empowerment.
The collaborative skill development project of JRF and CRF enabled Nisha to take her first steps towards a better and brighter future.
Our mission doesn't end here!
Sadly, far too many people are still suffering the consequences of truly bad working conditions. We are currently setting up a collaboration with a new fellow foundation. Stay tuned! In the meantime, if you would like to donate, then please click on the donate button below to support our mission.
