HYDERABAD: Women’s literacy plays a role in a healthy and prosperous society; this was discussed at the ceremony held by the Sindh Community Foundation.
Talking to the ceremony, SCF’s head, Javed Hussain, said our commitment to equip the rural women agriculture workers with basic literacy, numeracy, and essential reading and writing skills has proved to have a better impact on the lives of women in the past; SCF in the second phase of its literacy program.
He said that under this program, 10 Suhaee Literacy centers for women have been set up in 10 villages in the Matiari district with the support of Feed the Minds UK.
In these literacy centers, 350 women cotton workers are attending. He shared that in previous years, 359 women workers have completed a six-month literacy course and was better able to apply it in their daily lives.
Hussain added that by completing a comprehensive 6-month literacy program, 350 women would gain vital skills and confidence for making tangible improvements to their lives for years to come. At the individual level, their increased awareness of labor rights and ability to calculate wages will equip women to negotiate for fairer wages.
He said that the program supported increased incomes among women cotton pickers, leading to long-term improvements in the quality of life for them and their families. The 350 literacy trainees will informally share knowledge and skills gained through the classes with the other women in their trade unions and other women cotton pickers in their villages, supporting them in negotiating fairer wages.
Ms. Zubaida Turk, Social mobilization officer, said we believe that women cotton workers are responsible for the growth of the textile industry while they receive unfair wages and work in unfair working conditions. She demanded that occupational safety and health also need to be provided to these workers. She said that literacy changed lives and provided different perspectives on thinking and social consciousness. Besides, the literacy program will also contribute to increasing the female literacy ratio in the district.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024