Home / Region + Country Categories  / Asia & Oceania  / South Asia  / India  / INDIA: Women gain food processing, cultivation skills

INDIA: Women gain food processing, cultivation skills

Training takes place in 5 villages for women to improve their employment opportunities

(MissionNewswire) The Salesian-run Anma Integrated Development Association (AIDA) held a series of trainings for women who are part of self-help groups facilitated by the Don Bosco Campus in Dimapur, Nagaland, India, according to a recent article in the Nagaland Post. The trainings were held in five villages, with a focus on mushroom cultivation and food processing.

The goal was to provide skills training for unemployed youth and women. Self-help groups are set up to help women have better employment opportunities. Women attended hands-on training and had a chance to meet with different organizations and departments for cross-sharing of information in a real-work environment.

The mushroom cultivation training was held at the Mushroom Farmers’ Club in Bade village and was supported by the Mushroom Development Foundation of Guwahati. The food processing training focused on meat and pickles and was held at the Ministry Learning Center.

The 50 participants who attended the mushroom training were taught about the construction of the mushroom house, preparation of straw, incubation/spawning and casing soil. The 27 participants in the food processing training learned about food quality assurance, quality control, and preservation for meat and pickles.

“Salesian missionaries in India and around the globe provide educational programs for women so they can find employment and become self-sufficient, which aids their families and communities,” said Father Timothy Ploch, interim director of Salesian Missions, the U.S. development arm of the Salesians of Don Bosco.

Access to professional training and workforce development services is highly valued in India. The country, which is home to 1.34 billion people (18% of the world’s population), will have overtaken China as the world’s most populous country by 2024, according to the World Economic Forum. While India has the world’s largest youth population, it has yet to capitalize on this, leaving some 30% of this population without employment, education or training.

###

Sources:

Anma Integrated Development Association

Nagaland Post – Trainings on food processing and mushroom cultivation

Salesian Missions – India

World Bank – India