 It took mw two weeks to sew a dress by hand, now I can finish six in the same time
Thanks to a small donation from USAID Mariam Sánchez and other 76 women are sewing their way into a better life
So, what can one do with US $5,000? Just ask Miriam Sanchez. This
rural mom had few employment opportunities and as a result - a
rollercoaster income. Determined to act, she found that sewing was a
common thread between women in similar conditions in her community and
led the group to form a small association hungry for development. In a
one-room building beside the Church, a couple of needles, and some
thread - Miriam’s and the small community of Cubinche’s story begins.
To meet the growing interest and demand for the women’s products, USAID
provided financial support to help moms like Miriam. Comuna Cubinche
received $5,000 to equip a sewing workshop to manufacture quality and
low-priced clothes. Miriam and the group used the USAID funds to
purchase two industrial sewing machines, one overlock machine, an
embroidery machine, and a cloth cutting machine.
The community tailored the project to local conditions - contributing a
customized building, furniture to compliment the machines, and
equipment technical assistance. The local municipality provided
training - including new styles and patterns.
So where does the group go from here? Miriam casts a large smile- she
plans to form a micro-enterprise with the group, to increase promotion,
and to expand the workshop. Watch our women sew and grow - she says -
as we wave goodbye, clothes in hand.
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