Friends Welfare Association Pakistan
                                                                                        
    
 

Nageena Bibi is a twenty eight year, unmarried lady who resides at village Makria Bala of Union Council Shinkiari. She is having Skill training and education at the Education and Skill Training Center Shinkiari under Peace Stone Foundation/ FWA project. She was given special relaxation in the admission at the center Shinkiari instead of her high age due to her high vulnerability and disability.

Nageena Bibi is a physically challenged girl. She walks with the help of crutches. Four years ago, her father passed away from this world. Before that about fifteen years ago, her mother died leaving them all alone. She lives with her brothers, the family which is comprised of ten members. Her elder brother is married and has six children. So along with eight family members of her elder brother, Nageena and her younger brother also reside in the same house.

Her elder brother has a small shop but his income is not enough to fulfill the needs of all family members. Her younger brother is unemployed as well. Four children of her elder brother are in the school going age. Three of them attend government schools and one attend educational institute of FWA at Shinkiari. They own their house, which was inherited from their father. Their house is comprised of two rooms, one kitchen and one bath room.

For a family of ten members, it is very difficult to live in a small house, where there is shortage of even basic necessities of life. There is no provision of potable water in their house. They have to travel a distance for fetching water from a well. The family of Nageena is facing very difficult time i.e. they are facing financial and social crises. Her elder brother is a heart patient on account of which, he can not give much attention to his work. A rich amount of spending is required for his monthly treatment.

Nageena is very conscious about the poor financial situation of her family and about her future in particular as well. She has always tried not to make herself burden on her family as she has been contributing her role by helping her brother and sister in law in the domestic works in spite of her disability. She also acquired admission in a vocational training center which she is attending from last five months. She has learned the art of sewing the clothes both male and female, acquired the skills of hand made and machine embroidery and also the skills of preparing the decoration items. These skills have poured new life blood in her life as she is confident that she will be able to contribute her role in earning respectable living for her family to reduce the burden from the shoulders of her elder brother.

She says, “In her childhood, she used to be very disappointed, when she was looking other children playing while she could not. I used to weep in seclusion and lamenting over my fate. The poverty of our family and losing of parents added to my despondency. But then I with a divine gleam filled with a lot of courage. I started to thank God for His countless blessing on me. In this spirit, I took admission in the Education and Skill training center, which is run by FWA/Pease Stone Foundation at Shinkiari and felt my life changing after wards. I quickly acquired the skills with my extra hard work. These skills have given me a lot of respect, as women of our village visit our home for getting their clothes sewed by me. I have plans to start a small garment business in future, when I will have required money for it or if some organization assists me for that in term of interest free loan. I consider, the establishment of Education and Skill training center by FWA/Peace Stone Foundation is the apt intervention which will bring positive changes in the lives of poor and needy women of our area”.

Questions or problems regarding this web site should be directed to [Shakeel]