National Project Manager, Gender Promotion (Gen-Prom), Punjab, Sajeel Butt, said on Thursday that the UNDP-led training programme for the readymade garments sector has generated fresh jobs for 4,500 workers, women are in majority, by providing them skilled training in the last three years.
Talking to Business Recorder, Sajeel Butt said the Gender Promotion (Gen-Prom) through Skills Development in the clothing/garment sector, or Gen-Prom, is a five-year UNDP initiative. It aims at enhancing the skill level of garment and sewing industry workers so that this important backbone industry of Pakistan can survive on the tough challenges of global competition.
The project is targeted at reducing unemployment while simultaneously increasing much needed skilled workforce efficiency for the garment industry. Under this initiative, he added, the Ministry of Textiles supports companies in training their machine operators by providing 50 percent of the Master Trainers' salaries and a part of the stipend given to trainee operators.
GEN-PROM is recognised by the ministry for its content and quality of delivery, and all companies signed up with Gen-Prom can avail this opportunity. Sajeel Butt said the Gen-Prom has trained some 7000 workers since 2007 and some 6000 out of this total number are female workers. These female workers have been trained in major textile hubs of country including Faisalabad, Karachi and Lahore, he added.
According to him, the Gen-Prom aims at building the capacity of sewing factories to train a workforce using state-of-the-art curriculum and expert technical Master Trainers (MTs). The project provides training to workers in the areas of cutting, stitching, finishing, packing, quality assurance and quality control. The project has engaged renowned consultants in garment manufacture training, Technopak, to provide the curriculum and training, he said.
Sajeel Butt stressed the point that this training is for both unskilled workers and for those who have been working in the industry but are interested in refreshing their skills. It may be noted that the training is conducted in rounds of fourteen weeks. For each round, the project selects six factories, three in Sindh and three in the Punjab, based on their interest and suitability.
Each company/factory hires individuals to be trained as Master Trainers (MTs), who can be fresh graduates with no experience of the garment industry. These people are employees of the company (on their payroll) right from the beginning. There is an entry test to qualify for the training. Master Trainers then go to their respective factories where they establish a training unit, under the guidance of GEN-PROM trainers.