Jewels of Balochistan
By Sheher BanoIt was nothing short of a surprise for a stranger seeing young Maazaallah, a mute and deaf trainee at the Gems & Jewelry Training and Manufacturing Centre (GJTMC), Quetta, dealing with his customers in a very professional manner, with his sign language and advising them about a gemstone or a piece of jewelry. […]
Creating a vision for future
By Sheher BanoFor 37 years old Farzana Irfan, there is a life after retirement too. With her BA/B.Ed. degrees, she is serving as JVT female teacher for 22 years in a school in Quetta. “With a plan to work in an office after my retirement, I got myself enrolled in the IT Office Assistant course, […]
Smart thinking
By Sheher BanoEducation economist Ali Ansari once said: “Imparting education that enhances and challenges the cognitive abilities of students is critical to increasing labour productivity and creating a workforce that has the capability to innovate, problem solve, think critically and adapt to new technologies and circumstances.”It was with this purpose that training courses were offered, […]
Handmade is made with care
By Sheher BanoFarheen Agha is the first qualified, nationally certified assessor of gemstones in Balochistan and working as Lapidary In charge at the Gems & Jewellery Training and Manufacturing Centre (GJTMC), Quetta. With her double MA and 14 years’ experience, young Farheen had to work very hard to reach this position.“Here job opportunities for women […]
Good things come in small packages
By Sheher BanoMohsin Raza is the youngest among the 100 trainees of the Gems & Jewellery Training and Manufacturing Centre (GJTMC), Quetta. Studying in 6th grade, he goes to school in the morning and joins evening class of the centre and sits in his father’s gemstone shop on Saturdays and Sundays.Seeing him dealing with the […]
For the love of handmade jewellery
By Sheher Bano“Alfos Collection” is the brainchild of Mrs Saleem, a trainee at the Gems & Jewellery Training and Manufacturing Centre (GJTMC), who is making fashion jewellery for the last 10 years.“I enrolled myself in the fashion jewellery designing course to refresh my learning through Competency Based Training (CBT), a new approach of learning skills,” […]
Conquering the challenges with fortitude
By Sheher BanoThe 26 years old Jahanzeb, a victim of childhood polio is pursuing a Master’s degree in Quetta. He has done multiple skill courses and is also learning shorthand in the mere hope of getting a job as a stenographer. “I have also done a one-month course in bomb disposal.” Why bomb disposal? “For […]
All for a skilled Balochistan and affluent Pakistan
By Sheher BanoImam Ali, a trained general electrician, is on-the-job-training (OJT) at the maintenance department of Honda Superpower in a real worktime environment.“After practicing one phase wiring at the centre, here we are learning the difficult 3-phase electrical wiring. This additional skill will make our job easy in the industry, where this wiring system is […]
The will makes the way
By Sheher BanoSituated in the southwestern region of the country, Balochistan is the largest province of Pakistan in terms of land area. The 2017 Census shows that female make 47.5% (5.86 million) of the province’s total population (12.34 million). An estimated 2.3 million boys and girls are out of school, 1.1 million children can receive […]
Realizing the childhood dreams
With the sizzling sound of frying Chapli Kababs and beckoning to collect the ready orders one-after-other, Neha Naz is the lone female chef sharing workspace with 20 other male colleagues in the kitchen of one of the top line restaurants in Karachi.“In my family women usually don’t go out for work and earn, but becoming […]