Enterprise Development Program :  a description

Enterprise Development Program (EDP) is an integral part of Sustainable Livelihood Program that works with an objective to  “ Improve local livelihoods through economically viable, socially acceptable and environmentally sensible use of local resources” It aims to reduce poverty and improve livelihood rights of the most marginalized communities particularly women and minorities. EDP facilitates partners especially women in establishing small enterprises at house hold level and help them build local economy, strengthens the community for sustainable development - step towards transformation of their traditional roles.

EDP works with the most marginalized Home-based workers (HBWs) both women and men. They are selected and organized in a group once they become the member social mobilization program and form village committee at the village level.   EDP also works at national level in collaboration with other public and private organizations for the rights of the most marginalized home based women workers and the poor artisans. 

The EDP group members are the poorest of the poor. They do not have any additional income source apart from whatever the family head is earning, therefore socially particularly the women are most vulnerable to various forms of exploitation i-e social and economic. In a predominantly patriarchal society, women’s needs come last in the priority list in relation to other members of the family. They have minimal control over house hold income, sometimes these women cannot even avail health facilities in serious circumstance. Sungi works with the poorest and most marginalized communities, where women are largely affected.  Through the EDP, it endeavours to: 

• Enhance women’s livelihood opportunities for improved household income, especially in disaster hit areas where there is a lack of or limited opportunity for income generation activities especially for the destitute & women-headed house holds; 
• Empower women by improving their mobility and addressing gender biases that worsen poverty; 
• Strengthen partnerships and linkages at local, national and international levels to enhance advocacy on the rights of informal/home-based women workers to meet the challenges of globalization; and 
• Facilitate policy reforms based on the needs and issues of the deprived/marginalized craft persons and women home-based workers all over the country 

This is achieved through a holistic and integrated approach to empowerment  ,Working at all levels including district, provincial, national and international and Working in partnership with local communities, civil society, government, parliamentarians & international organizations  for advocacy for policy reforms.

EDP  Accomplishments  

The Enterprise Development Program (EDP) is the successor to the Crafts Promotion Program. In 1994 "Jisti" Craft Program (JCP) was a revival program begun on a voluntary basis in one village. Noordi village was formally adopted by Sungi in July 1997 to become part of the pilot program. In response to the demands of the village communities, it has now reached out to villages in four districts of Hazara, namely Haripur, Abbottabad, Battgram and Mansehra, and in Muzafferabad of AJK.  The EDP started off with only the revival and promotion of Jisti but later included and expanded to develop other traditional local crafts reflecting our heritage and culture, such as wood-carving, furniture, leather work, clay products, straw, carpet ad cloth weaving as enterprises. The scope of the program broadened, to encompass a larger partnership base from the year 2006 onwards. The program has expanded its geographical outreach over the years to marginalized crafts women and men working with CBO’s, NGO’s all over Pakistan to promote traditional crafts, cultural heritage and provide support in networking and marketing of their products through Sungi Craft Shops.

EDP has been working with Home-based women workers especially involved in traditional embroideries for more than one decade. Networking with other organizations working with home-based workers is one of the main focuses of the Program. EDP is also actively involved in advocacy campaign on the rights of Home- based women workers with reference to their rights on fair wages, recognition as workers, social protection, and ratification of ILO C -177 as well as on their rights to form associations to protect their rights.  In Pakistan more than 75% of the women are employed in the informal sector¹ . The overwhelming majority of these women are engaged in home-based work, mostly subcontracted piece rate some of which are based in sectors like garment, bangle work, sack stitching carpet weaving, packing and football stitching.  EDP has been  advocating for formulation of  polices for the rights of Home based women workers through lobbying with parliamentarians, government i-e federal , provincial, also raising awareness among the micro-finance institutions, craft persons, middle wo/men, private sector, and consumers on fair trade practice / fair wages.

On the basis of Sungi’s commitment to this cause experience in the field, Ministry of Women development in collaboration with UNIFEM selected  Sungi and requested to take up the coordination role and prepare draft National policy Home based women workers.   Advocacy campaign on the rights of home based workers gained full momentum resulting in draft National Policy on HBWs. This has been considered a milestone achievement of a more than one decade struggle of organizations to get HBWs recognized as formal laborer.

EDP’s proactive role as a focal organization at national level to advocate for the rights of home-based women workers and to draft the National Policy for home-based workers also led to the selection of Sungi as secretariat for the Working Group on HBWs. This is a national level forum for lobbying on legislative reforms and supporting home based workers issues.    

EDP along with the Indus Heritage Trust & Capital development Authority (CDA) Islamabad has initiated a joint venture of setting up of Arts & Crafts village. It is envisioned that the Arts & Crafts Village would portray, preserve and revitalize the cultural identity of Pakistan and serve as a showcase for the nation’s arts and craft heritage. It is a unique example of public private partnership.  It is also a two pronged approach towards the empowerment of marginalized craft-persons. This approach will  not only make the traditional craft as income generating activity which but will also  subsequently lead to the empowerment of the marginalized craft- persons, as well as   provide HBW/ Craft Persons a viable marketing opportunity, promote Fair Trade practices by limiting the role of middle men. The craft- persons will also be provided with capacity building training regarding designing and quality check to enable them to cope/ explore marketing options.

The good work and its impact has now crossed the boarders and Sungi was approached by Home Net South Asia to be focal organization to establish a Trade Facilitation Center (TFC) in Pakistan ;a project of SAARC  “Strengthening the Livelihood Initiative of Home based Workers in the SAARC Region" to be established in all member countries.  Sungi’s selection at South Asian level to establish Trade Facilitation Centre  in Pakistan substantiate its position as lead organizations lobbying for the rights and issues of Home based women workers at national level.

The TFC now called Sabah (SAARC Business Association of Home based Workers)  is a facilitating organization, plans to work with several producer organizations involved in organizing home-based workers to build craft and other home-based products. The goal of Sabah- Pakistan is to strengthen livelihood initiatives for Home- based women workers in SAARC sub-region and the specific  objectives are;

1.     Economic Empowerment of skilled (handicraft) marginalized home-based women workers (HBWW)

2.     Creation of  a source for regular income for skilled marginalized (HBWW)

3.     Register a  company owned and managed by the skilled marginalized HBWW 51% and producer organizations 49%

The essential idea is to create the requisite infrastructure and supply the necessary services to a number of producer organizations that might otherwise lack resources to invest individually or lack the ability to come together to invest in and implement such a system.

Small enterprises established at house hold level, especially by marginalized women contributed not only in improving the standards of living of marginalized, but also led to their social and political empowerment. To promote and link the marginalized wo/men to main stream market; Sungi has already established  four  marketing outlets in Islamabad and Karachi and Abbottabad by the name of Sungi Craft Shops and  has been registered with World Fair Trade Organization (WFTO)  previously called  IFAT. (International Federation for Alternative Trade).

EDP was awarded UNESCO- South Asian  “SEAL  Of EXCELLENCE( 2007)” for handcrafted Products. It is an acknowledgement by the international jury that  the product submitted by Sunig conforms to rigorous standard set for the international quality  and  innovation for  the competition.   

EDP was also awarded a Certificate on “Best Improvement in Living standards of HBWs” warded by Home net South Asia and UNIFEM in 2005.

EDP   Craft Group member Gulshon Bibi (Noordi) won the Consortium of Women Entrepreneur Of India (Cwei) Achievement Award in 2004. It was awarded to those women who successfully manage small enterprise.

In 2002 two Female Craft Activist won Women’s World Summit Foundation Award.Sungi craft person was also awarded Lok Virsa Artisan At Work in 1999.  Bhutri Women’s Village Committee won a “ Women’s World Summit Foundation Award in 1997.

EDP translated the  “Tools for Advocacyfor Social protection of informal workers” in Urdu prepared by Home Net Thailand and published by WIEGO (Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing ) WIEGO is global research policy network that seeks to improve the status of the working poor, especially women, in the informal economy through research on informal economy, Policies, regulations and law and representation of informal workers. In the workshop Tools for Advocacy for Social Protection of Informal workers were shared. The Urdu version was shared with community partners, organizations working for the rights of informal workers. This document is  also be up loaded on WIEGO website ( Urdu version ).        

EDP is also entrusted by Eiella Bhatt, the founder of Self  Employed Women Association (SEWA) India to translate her book in Urdu  “We are poor but so many” . It is a story of development of different stages of SEWA movement and how it became one the most powerful advocacy platform to raise voice for the informal women workers not only in India but at international level. The book has been translated and is at editing stage, it will be launched in Nov, 2009.Eiella Bhatt and the secretary SAARC will come to grace the accession.

Sungi is a founder member of HOME-NET Pakistan (a network of organizations working for he rights of Home-based women workers) and has recently joined WEMAN, a worldwide campaign on women economic empowerment.