The Department of Women Affairs (DWA) under the Ministry of Women and Children Affairs (MoWCA) has upgraded Shahid Sheikh Fazilatunnessa Mujib Women's Training Academy in Gazipur by introducing facilities for women including physically challenged to work in the readymade garment industry.
State Minister for Women and Children Affairs Meher Afroze Chumki inaugurated the new barrier-free training facilities at a function Tuesday. In collaboration with the GIZ-funded 'Promotion of Social and Environmental Standards in the Industry' (PSES), the MoCWA established the facilities.
Equipped with eight new additional class rooms--conference room, teachers' room, production rooms, merchandising, pattern-making and design room and counseling room--the training centre now offers inclusive skills development trainings for sewing operators and floor supervisors to women workers, including workers with disabilities in the RMG in Bangladesh, the German donor said in a statement.
The premises have also been re-constructed to allow barrier-free access and an inclusive environment for all trainees. All trainers at this center have successfully participated in a training to implement the concept of disability inclusion based on international standards and equal opportunities in skills training settings, the statement added.
Addressing the function, the state minister said the lack of qualified workers and mid-level managers including workers with disabilities is a key constraint to the growth and diversification of Bangladesh's export-oriented RMG sector.
She expressed the hope that the government in collaboration with the German Development Cooperation will be able to achieve optimal results through the establishment of the new training facilities.
Roswitha Amels, First Secretary, Deputy Head of Development Cooperation at the German Embassy and Magnus Schmid, Program Coordinator, PSES, GIZ also spoke on the occasion.
PSES in joint collaboration with the MoWCA has been running this training centre since September 2009. It was initially set up to offer training on sewing operation to disadvantaged women from the rural areas in order to provide them with adequate jobs in the RMG sector.
The training program was later complemented by a sewing floor supervisor training. More than 1,500 women have been trained in the two-month demand-driven technical courses so far. Ninety six per cent of the graduates have been successfully employed in the RMG sector after the training. In addition, the inclusive skills development trainings represent an opportunity for Rana Plaza collapse victims for their rehabilitation and reintegration in better jobs.
Training facility upgraded to help disable women work for apparel sector
FE Report | Published: April 16, 2014 00:00:00 | Updated: November 30, 2025 06:01:00
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