Communities hail Paak Foundation for offering free tailoring lessons at Nsaru Trading Centre

Malawi: The Paak Foundation will provide free tailoring and design lessons to Nsaru Trading Centre communities on the outskirts of Malawi's capital, Lilongwe, writes Watipaso Mzungu.

The foundation has established a professional tailoring and design school in the marketplace to assist the unemployed community in acquiring skills for earning a living.

Talha Malik, the newly registered charitable organization's founder and director, stated that he decided to open the school to economically empower underprivileged youths and women from the trading centre and surrounding areas.

Malik stated after handing over sewing machines on Sunday that the charity's primary goal is to provide livelihood programmes for underprivileged women and youth.

"The idea is to provide women and youth with skills that will enable them to earn additional income and care for their school-aged children." We anticipate that once the tailoring training is completed, the trainees will be able to get a good job or start small and medium businesses to improve their living standards and support their families and dependents," he said.

Malik revealed that the foundation would not charge for the lessons.

"These lessons are completely free, and anyone interested in learning the trade is welcome. We also intend to open a welding school here, as well as in other parts of the country. I would like to appeal to individuals and organisations of goodwill to make in-kind donations to the centre so that more women and young people can benefit from the livelihood programmes," he said.

One of the students, Halima Juma, described the school as a timely intervention for the area's impoverished women and youth.

Juma anticipates that once the training is completed, the beneficiaries will invest in small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in tailoring and embroidery.

Village Head Ibrahim Alifu praised the school's opening, emphasising that it will provide an alternative employment opportunity for women in the surrounding villages.

"This is a fantastic opportunity for poor women, married and unmarried, to earn a living if they successfully complete the training. As chiefs, we will collaborate closely with the foundation to achieve the set goal," Alifu said.

According to studies, SMEs account for the vast majority of businesses worldwide and are critical contributors to job creation and global economic development. They account for roughly 90% of businesses and more than 50% of global employment.

In emerging economies, formal SMEs contribute up to 40% of national income (GDP).