At many of our events, we have collected donations of unwanted craft supplies that are sent to Cambodia to be used by my friend Sally at Human and Hope Association with their children's programs. Today we have a guest post from Sally, talking about their very successful sewing program.
Breaking
Down Barriers to Sew
When
Saney was in her early 20’s, she dreamed of being a seamstress. However, for
someone living in poverty and only having enough food to eat twice a day, this
dream was out of reach for her. Fast forward to when she was 28 years old,
Saney’s neighbour told her about a new sewing program at an NGO she had just
graduated from. Eager to study, Saney asked her husband for permission. He said
no. She asked again. He said no. She continued to persist until her husband
eventually agreed for her to study in the year long sewing program at Human and
Hope Association in Siem Reap, Cambodia.
Saney’s story is not unique. A big
challenge we face in recruiting students into our sewing program at Human and
Hope Association is their families. Coming from families classified as the
‘poorest of the poor’, our students’ relatives (and also the students
themselves) often don’t understand the benefits of education. It is a hard
concept to grasp, that studying for a year will enable them to gain a skill
that can move them out of poverty when all but one of our sewing students never
even finished primary school. Our students’ families see the program as a waste
of time, especially when they need money immediately to pay for basic living
costs.
This is where our daily stipend comes
in. We provide our students with 1kg of rice a day in return for them studying
with us three hours a day, five days a week. Our sewing students also have a
patch of land at Human and Hope Association which they are responsible for
taking care of. We assist them by teaching them chemical-free farming
techniques (unusual for Cambodia) and when the vegetables are ready they
receive them instead of rice. Fully involving our students in our program, from
feedback sessions to life skills workshops to bringing back successful sewing
graduates is what is needed to engage them and retain them in our program. I am
not going to lie; it is tough going. We have lost very promising sewing
students due to the pull their families have over them, the need to move to
Thailand to earn an income (as they see this as the only option) or health
issues.
However, our team don’t give up.
This is because we have seen first hand how our sewing program transforms
lives. The students who complete our program have increased confidence, the
ability to earn an income through machines they borrow through our microfinance
program and a better understanding of how to overcome personal issues they are
bound to face.
Our most outstanding students are
chosen to be our seamstresses and make products for us, earning a fair wage and
also reaping the benefits of employment with Human and Hope Association, such
as constant development, even after they graduate. Their confidence continues
to increase as they learn how to make new products, apply their creative flair
to existing products and see the photos of happy customers who buy their work.
It is a long journey these
marginalised villagers face, but with our support and their commitment, they
will reach their end destination; moving out of the poverty bracket and
ensuring a better future for their children.
To
purchase Human and Hope Association’s products please visit our online store.
All income supports the payment of fair wages to our seamstresses and funds our
education, vocational training and community support projects.
To
keep updated with what we are achieving in our community, please like us on
Facebook
For
further information on how you can support the empowerment of Cambodians,
please contact me at
