Women’s union targets rural jobs

The union will also build and upgrade 37 vocational training centres in rural areas nationwide.

These targets are contained in a project proposal to support vocational training and create jobs for women during the 2009-15 period, which the union will submit to the Government next month.

Priority would be given to improving the professional skills and capacity of union members and teachers at vocational training schools, union officials said.

The project envisages that around 6,000 officials and teachers will have their professional skills improved every year until 2015.

The Union will provide information about the project to at least 70 per cent of female workers every year in order to increase community awareness of women’s roles in the national economy.

Women make up 48.4 per cent of the country’s workforce, of whom o­nly 16.7 per cent have been trained, according to the union.

This limits employment opportunities for most women.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Invalids and Social Affairs, in 2007, more than 71 per cent of untrained female workers lost jobs while o­nly 9.1 per cent of trained people lost jobs temporarily.

The situation is made worse by gender inequality that is widely prevalent in the labour market.