LIVELIHOOD DEVELOPMENT
Our "Livelihood Development Project" focuses upon:
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6 month low- cost courses in : a) Computers b) Stitching, Tailoring and Merchandising c) Beauty and Wellness
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Creating rural micro-enterprise models
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Personality development workshops
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English- speaking workshops
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Workshops in interview skills and CV writing
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Job fairs
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Career counseling with recruiters
NANAK rural centres, as also the urban centre at Timarpur, provide courses in computer, beauty and wellness, and stitching, tailoring, and merchandising. These are 6-month courses that are primarily aimed at people from disadvantaged backgrounds. There is a focus on developing entrepreneurial skills and connecting trainees to jobs following the courses. Details of these centres are given below.
1. Timarpur Vocational Training Centre
In collaboration with TATA Power and PHD Family Welfare Foundation, NANAK set up a training centre with beautician classes and computer classes on 1st January 2016. The centre has high-quality infrastructure with air conditioners, water coolers and eleven computers. The centre is particularly aimed at people from socio-economically backwards sections of the community. Upon completion of the courses, trainees get certified by the Jan ShikshaSansthan, a Central Government certifying body. The certificate will help students raise their value in the job market. The centre has two trainers and a project coordinator, and runs 6-month certificate classes. The centre is running full classes with many aspiring trainees registering for the next set of classes later in the year. Currently, 80 trainees are enrolled in beauty and wellness training while 75 in computer classes. Classes also have a component on gender-sensitivity, English speaking, personality development, and connecting 70% of trainees to jobs.
The Centre also acts as a focal point in the area for NANAK to conduct awareness-raising programmes, job fairs, and training workshops. These focus on health, hygiene, personality-development, English speaking skills, awareness on social issues, etc. For instance, in partnership with the PHD Family Welfare Foundation, NANAK facilitated a health and hygiene camp attended by over 250 people at the centre in early January 2016.
2. Deo Women’s Empowerment Centre:
The Deo Centre for Women’s Empowerment is being supported by NANAK since August 2015. It runs classes in stitching, tailoring and merchandising and beauty and wellness at a nominal cost. There is also an emphasis on the role of the centre in acting as a hub for women to gather, mobilise, share problems, escalate their issues to Panchayats and find strength in number.
Deo Centre has been fully equipped with necessary beauty and wellness and stitching, tailoring and merchandising equipment, and four computers.
The centre will be starting a community library and information centre along with an early childhood development centre, in partnership with READ India, at the end of March 2016.
3. Raipurchor Women’s Empowerment Centre
NANAK started the Raipuchor Women’s Empowerment Centre in Raipurchor village, Sasaram, Bihar in October 2015. The Centre aims at empowering women by helping them in becoming financially independent, and by facilitating the creation of women’s self-help-groups. The Centre provides 6-month courses in beautician training and stitching, tailoring, and merchandising.NANAK has fully equipped and staffed the Centre, with support from PHD Family Welfare Foundation. Two trainers have been employed, one each in beauty and wellness and one for stitching, tailoring and merchandising. The Centre provides these training to women, particularly those from disadvantaged background, at a nominal fees. The trainers are actively trying to mobilise women in the area to come together and form self-help-groups. There is also an effort to promote self-sustaining micro-enterprise for women in local foodstuffs and other locally-produced handicrafts products. NANAK is also exploring ways to market clothing products from the stitching, tailoring and merchandising classes.A key component of this project is also to build the capacity and leadership skills of women, so that they can better act as community leaders and bring gender issues to the forefront.
4. Durgawati Learning Centre
The Durgawati Learning Centre is located in Kirpalpur village, Kaimur District, Bihar. Kirpalpur has a total population of about 840 (Census, 2011). NANAK opened the centre on 2nd October 2015, with support from Taskhila Education Society (TES). The centre provides free-of-cost remedial classes for children in the area, currently over 117 children from socio-economically backward sections benefit from these classes. The centre also runs 6-month computer courses at a nominal cost. The centre currently has 8 computers and a trained computer teacher.
There is an ongoing demand from other students in the area to attend these remedial classes, and NANAK is exploring the option of hiring an additional trainer and running two sets of classes, contingent on resources.
5) Dawath Facilitation Centre
Dawath is located in Rohtas, Bihar. The DawathFacilitation Centre was started by NANAK in on 7 April 2015. It
organized short-term course in computer training and beautician training. NANAK conducted a monitoring and
evaluation visit to the centre in September 2015. So far the centre has trained 12 girls in beauty and wellness, and
seven in computers. Two girls from Dawath Facilitation Centre were given the opportunity to attend a 17-day long
training programme under Sandarshika. A batch of 8 girls were mobilized to participate the in the
Women's Day Programme at village Majhui, and also take part in a friendly Kabaddi match between the girls from
village Majhuiand village Dawath.
