The Small and Medium Enterprise Foundation initiated a skills development training programme on Tuesday for the members of martyrs and injured fighters of the July Uprising.
Through this training, jointly organised聽with July Shaheed Smrity Foundation, the SME Foundation aimed to transform the families into successful entrepreneurs.
The inauguration of the three-day training kicked off on Tuesday at the Bangladesh Institute of Management (BIM) in the capital.
At the inaugural ceremony of the three-day training, SME Foundation managing director Anwar Hossain Chowdhury said that they have plans to implement further skills development training programmes for the family members of the July Uprising.
鈥榃e would collaborate with the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation for the similar training initiatives, so that we could target more beneficiaries from the 2024 July Uprising,鈥� he added.
According to the SME Foundation, through the training initiatives, the participants would receive hands-on training in various art and craft techniques, including colour basics, tie-dye methods, T-shirt painting, Madhubani art, pottery painting, Russian painting, fabric and glass painting, jute bag design, African art, stencil work, and jewellery making.
鈥楾he course would also cover the basics of raw material sourcing and pricing strategies,鈥� said the SME Foundation MD.
Regarding the training, Kamal Akbar, chief executive officer of the July Shaheed Smrity Foundation, told 抖阴精品 that after the initial training, eligible entrepreneurs would receive advanced training tailored to their expertise.
鈥楾he training programme initiated only for the female members of the martyrs and injured families,鈥� he added.
鈥榃e formed a committee to supervise the developments of the trainee. We would work with them till they become entrepreneurs,鈥� he added.
Currently, the SME sector contributes nearly 30 per cent to Bangladesh鈥檚 economy, according to preliminary findings from the Economic Census 2024 by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics.
Moreover, the country is home to approximately 11.8 million cottage, micro, small, and medium enterprises, which provide about 85 per cent of total industrial employment.
More than 30 million people are directly engaged in this sector.
The SME Foundation stated that, given Bangladesh鈥檚 large population and limited resources, the SME sector plays a vital role in driving socio-economic development and generating employment.
Since its inception in 2007, the Foundation has supported nearly 2 million entrepreneurs, 60 per cent of whom were women, said the SME Foundation.
At the event, Khondaker Azizul Islam, director general of BIM, Md Nazim Hasan Sattar and Farzana Khan, deputy managing directors of the SME Foundation, and Shamsi Ara Zaman, general secretary of the July Martyrs Memorial Foundation, also spoke.
