‘UNDP empowering rural women’

KARACHI – The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in collaboration with the Engro Foods Limited have initiated Community Empowerment through Livestock and Credit (CELDAC) programme.

An announcement on Thursday said that the project has been designed in order to provide opportunities for self-employment and income generation among the rural women as well as help them in maintaining the health of the livestock.

It was pointed out that the livestock sector is critical to Pakistan particularly its rural areas. The livestock provides quality food like milk, meat and eggs for human and organic fertilizer for crop production.

Some of their value added products like carpets and leather garments are significant foreign exchange earners. Millions of rural poor depend on livestock for their livelihood and it is their only means of savings for emergencies.

Women dominate domestic livestock management in Pakistan and they are involved in almost all aspects of animal health and production.

Despite their considerable involvement and contribution, women’s role in livestock production has been under-estimated, undervalued and widely ignored.

Combining the two aspects, the Engro Foods Limited and the UNDP have initiated Community Empowerment through Livestock and Credit (CELDAC) programme.

This project has been designed in order to provide opportunities for self-employment and income generation among the rural women as well as help them in maintaining the health of the livestock.

It was also pointed out that almost every household in rural areas has a couple of buffaloes, 2-4 cattle and a few sheep, goats and poultry birds, which is mostly handled by women.

However, this does not bring them any substantial income generation or empowerment. All the four provinces in Pakistan have fairly large livestock extension departments. These departments are still essentially veterinary departments providing preventive vaccination against animal epidemics.
Source: The Nation
Date:8/29/2008