Thirty dressmakers at Susuanso in the Tano North Municipality of the Ahafo Region are being trained under the Women Economic Resiliency Programme (WERP), an integrated business and community support initiative, to help sustain their trade.
On the theme: “Empowering Women-Owned Dressmaking Enterprises”, the programme aims to improve and sustain women-owned micro, small, medium and informal dressmaking businesses through technical and business management training.
It is being implemented by PYXERA Global, an international non-governmental organisation, and funded by Invest for Jobs, a special initiative on training and job-creation of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, through the German Development Cooperation (GIZ) with support from Newmont Ghana.
The beneficiaries were selected from five communities -Susuano, Yamfo, Afirispakrom, Terchire and Adrobaa in the Ahafo North Mine area of Newmont Ghana to be equipped with the requisite knowledge, skills and insight into best sewing and business development practices to grow and expand their businesses.
At the launch of the WERP at Susuanso, Mr Kofi Koomson, the Programme Director of PYXERA global, said the US$420,000-project started in October 2021 where 124 participants went through the interview process out of which 30 were selected.
The participants will undergo six months continuous training in sewing of working gears, uniforms and other attires to meet the competitive markets.
He, therefore, urged them to take the training seriously to sustain the project for others to also benefit to enhance women’s economic development.
He said his organisation leverages public, private, and volunteer resources to strengthen businesses, institutions and governments in emerging markets in 70 countries.
Mr Kwame Agbeko Azumah, the Director of Communication and External Relations, Newmont Ghana, said the WERP project was in line with Newmont’s commitment to creating business value and improving the lives of its stakeholders through sustainable and responsible mining.
The company played an important role in catalysing the economic development and social well-being of the Government and host communities through job-creation, local sourcing and community investments, he said.
It believed that for women to succeed and advance economically, they required skills, resources, fair and equal access to economic institutions, Mr Azumah said.
Hence fostering women economic empowerment involved creating an enabling environment that eliminated barriers they encountered and the provision of a supportive framework of their engagement in the economic realm.
He urged the participants to equip themselves with the knowledge and skills to impact the younger generations to also build their careers and become economically independent through dressmaking.
Mr John Duti, the Team leader for Invest for Job at GIZ Ghana, said if women were given access to the right tools, training and resources they would become catalysts for poverty eradication and sustainable development.
He said WERP was expected to create about 300 jobs for women and young dressmakers in the Ahafo North, South and Akyem mining areas to support the government’s agenda on job creation and improve the economic standard of women.
As part of the outdooring of the beneficiaries, a 30-seater capacity state-of-the-art Sewing Centre was inaugurated to facilitate the programme.
Source: Ghana News Agency
