Pictured above (L to R): (1) bolts of fabric, (2) our first group to learn tailoring, (3) the type of sewing machine used.
As 2023 draws to an end, Margaret & Emma organization has already looked forward to what 2024 will bring to the development of our community.
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We hope to start tailoring training at the beginning of next year by opening a tailoring training center in our one of our front shops at the organization headquarters. The young teenage mothers will be the first trainees once the program commences.
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Most of these young teenage mothers are unemployed having dropped out of school at an early age. Equipping them with income generating skills such as tailoring is one of the ways of empowering them to take care of their children as well as their personal needs. We believe that bringing them together to learn will give them a new sense of belonging, and will create a safe space for them to learn and develop as young women.
Setting up the tailoring shop is the next big fundraising effort. It will cost around $2,000 to set up the tailoring center, and train the first group of women. These costs include sewing machines, fabric, sewing supplies, food for trainees, salary for the trainer, and miscellaneous supplies to furnish the training center.
We will keep you updated as we progress.
In 2023, we did sponsor training for one of our groups to learn tailoring. They spent three months meeting twice a week to learn various sewing and taioring skills. This was our first introduction to tailoring, and we hope that by establishing our own training center, we will be able to help more women long-term.
-Natukunda Fortunate, Executive Director & Co-Founder