Ladies in the Front Seat
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Ladies in the Front Seat
A PROJECT AIMING TO UPLIFT CHITWAN’S UNDERPRIVILEGED WOMEN’S SOCIO-ECONOMIC STATUS THROUGH DRIVING, ENGLISH, BASIC LEGAL, HOSPITALITY, FIRST AID AND VEHICLE MAINTENANCE TRAINING
This project aims to provide training to 20 women in the Ratnanagar and Kalika Municipalities in the Chitwan province. Most of the women living in these municipalities are very poor. They work as very low paid unskilled labourers and feed themselves by fishing in the local lake and ponds. The low paid unskilled labour is agriculture based and very seasonal, hence they spend most of their time at home, resulting in high birth rates and consumption of alcohol.
PROJECT GOALS
Empowerment through legal training as well as psycho-social counselling services
Improvement of the women’s confidence level
Improvement of the women’s and their families’ living standards
Improvement in stable income generation
Reducement of harassment
EXPECTED PROJECT RESULTS
Increased legal awareness level.
After completion of the training programme at least 75 percent of the beneficiaries/candidates will start driving the auto riksja.
Single/marginalised women can start earning money, support their families and their children’s education.
Improved the self confidence levels and living standards.
Project Status
APRIL 2022
9 motivated women obtained their driver's license despite the long waiting time to apply for their driving test because of Covid. One of them obtained a tuk-tuk driver’s license, which is a separate license. We are very proud that these women stayed very eager to obtain their license because they had to wait for almost 2 years. We will stay closely connected to them and support them where we can.
September 2021
The Ladies in the Front Seat project has almost come to an end. To practice for their examination they drove an entire day in the safari jeep of Sapana Village Lodge. It went very well and we hope that all the ladies get their government driving license soon.
In Sauraha, Nepal there are only male drivers. It’s time for women to show what they’re capable of and get hired for driving jobs. Gender equality is still necessary and we hope to contribute with this first group of ladies in our driving project.
april 2021
During Debbie and Gita’s trip in March 2021 they spent time with the driving candidates to talk about their progress. In July 2021 they will sit for their theory and practical driving exams. They will spend 2 weeks taking extra driving lessons before their exams. We also discussed the next steps and future plans once they obtain their driver’s license in July. Some of them want to start their own transportation company, others want to become a jeep safari driver or a driver for a local hotel. Some of the ladies applied to become a bus driver for the local school. We will continue monitoring them and supporting them where we can.
NOVEMBER 2020
The complete lockdown in Chitwan is over for now. Fortunately our candidates can continue their programme.
12 of our candidates finished their mechanical training and had their written exam. They are now preparing themselves for the theory exam and driving test.
MARCH 2020
Our candidates are in the process of learning how to drive as well as learning conversation English and hospitality skills. They started the mechanic course on 8 March, International Women's Day.
NOVEMBER 2019
When Gita and Debbie visited Nepal in November 2019, the ‘Ladies in the Front Seat’ project was officially kicked off. The project will support 20 women from the Kalika and Ratnanagar Municipalities. Read more about the inauguration ceremony in our news and update section.
Objectives
The objective of the project is to provide driving, English, hospitality, vehicle maintenance and first aid training. Through this training, we hope to improve the economic status of the families, increase the attendance of children in school, reduce birth rates and eventually uplift the communities as a whole. Candidates who join the training programme are expected to contribute to the “Pay-it-Forward” principle of 6° both financially and repayment in kind within their communities.
Project Partnership
6º is partnering with Sapana Village Social Impact (SVSI) for this project which is expected to last for a minimum of 3 - 6 months. The project entails screening and selection of the candidates, providing legal and social rights training, driving training, vehicle maintenance, English and first aid. Once the training is completed, the women will be assisted in securing new jobs.
SVSI was chosen for their reputation within Nepal, especially in the Chitwan region, as a reliable partner, with strong references from other Dutch foundations who have worked with them in the past. Furthermore, 6º firmly believes in working with local reputable partners as they know the local market, culture and society the best.
Funding
6º raised Euro 14,378 in total for this project. This project was partly sponsored by our corporate donor Golfpark De Haenen. The rest of the money was raised during two fundraising events in 2019.
Training Programme
The training programme is designed so that the candidates are not only trained so that they can obtain a driving license but also in hospitality, legal awareness, English, vehicle maintenance and first aid; in order for the successful graduates to find employment in the hospitality sector in Chitwan.
Cover Image Credit: Karuna-Shechen