IMMEDIATE RELEASE: January 25, 2018
CONTACT: Xandie Kuenning, Girls’ Education Intern | xandiek.iphd@gmail.com
Launched in 2015, Saheli Women is an ethical fashion social enterprise, developed as a social initiative by IPHD, that includes 24 women in the village of Bhikamkor, providing them with fair wages and a safe work environment free from gender, religious and caste discrimination. From the very start, the women have dreamt of working on professional sewing machines. On Jan. 24, that dream came true.
After going through the IPHD budget, the IPHD team and the women decided to have IPHD invest in new machines. IPHD facilitated the purchase of four Juki sewing machines which arrived, in addition to a technician to help assemble the machines, to Bhikamkor on Jan. 24.
Following the set-up of the first machine, a ceremony was held by the Saheli Women to celebrate the arrival of the new machines. The youngest in the group tied a red string for protection onto the machine while the rest of the group sang. It was a celebration for both the women and their children, all of whom received sweets at the end of the ceremony.
The technician spent most of the day and part of the evening working to set up all the machines and teach the women how to use them, even persevering in the dark due to a power cut.
Saheli Women is always striving to provide the best quality for our partners and these sewing machines are yet another step towards progress and improvement.
iphdindia.com 