Vocational Training for 5,000 Women in Pakistan

In my recent visit to Pakistan I witnessed first hand the impacts of our program on young women. The girls that are receiving education and vocational training through our program are not being forced into early marriages.  We have prevented over 108 early marriages alone this year! The parents acknowledge that the girls can be an asset to the family and help with household costs, which means they are not as likely to marry them off. 

We did notice there is a gap of 50 girls who have received up to grade 5 education, but were not given the opportunity to continue their education. We would like to include them in this project in order to provide them with vocational skills and business training so they can begin to provide income for themselves, decrease their dependence and not be forced into early marriage. We will hopefully begin these trainings in January 2018.

When young girls are married while they are still children (under the age of 18) the result is that they are denied fundamental human rights. Child marriage compromises their development and often results in early pregnancy and social isolation, with little education and poor vocational training reinforcing the gendered nature of poverty. Required to perform heavy amounts of domestic work, under pressure to demonstrate fertility, married girls and child mothers face constrained decision-making and reduced life choices. Both boys and girls are affected by child marriage but the issue impacts girls in far larger numbers, with more intensity—and is wide ranging.^*

The Safer World Foundation continues to match every donation made to this project by 50%. Please share this opportunity with friends and family you think might be interested in supporting underserved young women in Pakistan so that they may receive the hand up they need to chose peace and prosperity over violence and despair.  

 We currently have 20 students enrolled in vocational training at each of the schools. With a recent donation of a new sewing machine we are able to support more sewing classes and students. The Enterprise Development program will now operate exclusively in the communities where MDF has closer ties to the local community and therefore can more easily monitor progress. We expect about 1000 enrollees between 2017-2018 and estimate a higher level of post training success as a result of our increased monitoring capacity.

Our vocational training and enterprise development programs have a direct impact not only on the wellbeing of the women who participate in our program but on the wellbeing of their entire family as well. Women who earn income tend to reinvest that income in their families at much higher rates than men do. When women acquire marketable skills and the knowledge base to start and manage a successful business, they are furnished with the means to provide for their families’ needs (in terms of health care or education) on their own.

From Amina*, a project participant in Vocational Training,  "I started sewing and doing embroidery work for women in my neighborhood. For five years I continued to sew and stitch, but could not earn enough to maintain livelihood. Then I came to know about Marshall Direct Fund. This came as a ray of hope for me. I was lucky to be selected for 4-days vocational training program which helped in improving my existing skills and here I learnt about decision making, communication and financial skills. The vocational training program plays a very important role in shaping the lives of women like myself and contributes to empowering women and lifting them out of poverty."

*Name changed to protect identity

The Safer World Foundation continues to match every donation made to this project by 50%. Please share this opportunity with friends and family you think might be interested in supporting underserved young women in Pakistan so that they may receive the hand up they need to chose peace and prosperity over violence and despair.  

Thank you on behalf of the students, entrepreneurs and MDF staff!

In 2017 we are planning to provide regular sewing courses for women who are willing pay a fee for learning new sewing skills. Our target is women in the neighborhood who can afford to pay for the classes and bring their own materials. These fees will then be used to pay the salary of the instructor but also enable us to provide free training to underserved women in the area, including interested mothers and sisters of our students.

There are several vocational training centers in the neighborhood, offering free/nominal charges courses, which include computer skills, sewing classes, plumbing, training in livestock management and beautician courses, to name a few. The ultimate goal of these centers is to empower youth. Once our students finish their high school education (grade 10), we will assist them with the enrollment process to attend these centers.  All these courses offer better prospects for employment. 

The Safer World Foundation continues to match every donation made to this project by 50%. Please share this opportunity with friends and family you think might be interested in supporting underserved young women in Pakistan so that they may receive the hand up they need to chose peace and prosperity over violence and despair.

We always welcome visitors at our schools or trainings which can be arranged through our director, Farida fahmad@moqah.org. Please help us generate awareness – become a fan of our Facebook page, join us on Twitter, and share with your networks if you haven't already. If you or anyone you know would like to start a MDF Allies in Action group in your community there are various one-time or annual or monthly ideas and activities. Contact us here to learn more.
Thank you on behalf of the students, entrepreneurs and MDF staff!

Thank you to everyone who donated in 2016, your support enables vulnerable women to gain access to the skills, resources, and network needed to grow and start enterprises. In 2017 we hope to grow this program to serve more women as well as provide hard skills, equipment, and materials for women wishing to hone their embellishment skils for high-end fashion and wedding attire. By providing women with business and financial management skills, along with assistance in specific trades and the market-linkages that get product to market, women can earn greater incomes. More income translates to improved health, education, and livelihoods for families. Thank you for making this important work possible. 

The Safer World Foundation continues to match every donation made to this project by 50%. Please share this opportunity with friends and family you think might be interested in supporting underserved young women in Pakistan so that they may receive the hand up they need to chose peace and prosperity over violence and despair.

We always welcome visitors at our schools or trainings which can be arranged through our director, Farida fahmad@moqah.org. Please help us generate awareness – become a fan of our Facebook page, join us on Twitter, and share with your networks if you haven't already. If you or anyone you know would like to start a MDF Allies in Action group in your community there are various one-time or annual or monthly ideas and activities. Contact us to learn more, info@marshalldirectfund.org.  

Thank you on behalf of the students, entrepreneurs and MDF staff!

Thank you to everyone who donated this year, we won $1,000 of prize funds for getting 3rd place in most unique donors with the Safer World Fund contest. This goes a long way to ensuring more vulnerable women gain access to the skills, resources, and network needed to grow and start enterprises. Research shows that women in developing countries, on average, re-invest 80-90% of their earnings back into their families. Not only do livelihoods improve and alternatives to extremist recruitment prevail, but they are breaking cycles of poverty.