Introduction to Vision Pakistan:
Vision Pakistan is a registered Trust founded in 2007. It is being funded with the Zakat contributions of immediate family and friends. Its sole purpose is to give a “second chance” to Pakistan’s youth who are above the age of 16 and have not been given any formal education or training. We want to bring a revolution in the lives of such young people. In one year’s time we want a young person with apparently no prospects to not only be transformed into an expert dress technician/ master tailor, but to also acquire skills to become an independent and successful human being. In that one year while he is learning to become a Master tailor we also teach him necessary literacy skills in Urdu, Basic Math & in Basic Bookkeeping. In addition to these, other necessary life skills such as Critical Thinking, Time Management, Hygiene, Tolerance, Gender Sensitivity and Self-Awareness are also taught. Our mission is to see an individual earning Rs. 1000-2000/day, after successfully completing our one year course. Our program is a “second chance” for those who have missed the boat of being formally educated and trained while they were at school. Vision Pakistan is dedicated to struggling against poverty and is striving to make the citizens of this country independent and self-reliant. Its target audience is young men above the age of 16 who are expected to become the bread winners of their families. Why Tailoring?
• Within Pakistan most individuals rely on tailors for their clothing needs. The traditional practice of women stitching clothes at home seems to be decreasing in popularity. Therefore the market has a steady, increasing demand every year.
• Even though there are no official figures available, the number of commercial tailoring shops within any major city would easily be in the thousands. The economic value of such establishments must not be underrated as not only do they provide jobs for our nation’s unemployed youth; they also provide unique opportunities for budding entrepreneurs.
• There is a considerable potential for the tailoring industry to produce value added products for the local and international market. With the correct training and improved market conditions, Pakistani tailored garments can attain quality standards the likes of those made in Savile Row *, London. Countries like Hong Kong and Thailand are known for their quick and high end quality individually tailored clothes. Excellent textiles are available locally in cotton, wool and silk. With the development of necessary skills and management capabilities Pakistan could become a world leader of bespoke tailored goods. The combination of placing orders on the internet and using courier services can help make bespoke tailoring for the international market a reality.
• Tailoring is a lucrative vocation to provide training for because the profession: (a) can be taught to semiliterate people, although as is the case with other professions, the possibilities for growth improve with higher levels of education and literacy, (b) it involves low start up costs, running costs and equipment investment. Therefore it provides entrepreneurs with opportunities to set up viable businesses with a small amount of capital. Despite all of the above there are hardly any proper tailoring schools for men in the country. There are lots of industrial homes which teach cutting and sewing to young women; where as the demand in the market is for young men. There is an acute shortage of well trained tailors/ dress technicians and there is a dire need for training institutes to be established to teach this necessary skill. Training at the Tailoring Institute
We offer a one year diploma in drafting, cutting and sewing
The training year is divided into two semesters. Semester -1 (6 1/2 months):
Junior Section (3 months)
Six modules of a 2 week duration each. Senior Section(3 1/2 months)
Six modules of a 2 week duration each and 2 modules of 1 week duration each. After each module, students have to pass a practical and oral test to go on to the next level module. The training in semester 1 consists of three parts:
Training related to tailoring i.e. all these skills are of the highest order and students are given rigorous practice to master these skills. Enhancement of Urdu literacy and Numeracy skills are also part of this training
Training related to mindset change which comprises training of essential life skills. This includes training in self awareness, critical thinking, hygiene, conflict resolution, gender sensitivity, tolerance etc. This training is given with the objective of making a person a more useful, progressive and a tolerant citizen. Semester -2 (5 1/2 months):
Sewing Lab
After a student has successfully completed six month and a half of formal training in drafting, cutting and sewing, he is moved to the sewing lab. The sewing Lab is a continuation of the practical training. Here their cutting and sewing skills are perfected. The sewing Lab takes orders from the general public. This helps students in enhancing skills needed for working in a real life situation. Here they learn how to take orders, how to fill in receipts; take measurements, deal with customers, how to cut and stitch according to the demands of each customer and how to do time management of their orders. We want to highlight the position of a tailor in a society. Clothing is a very important necessity of a human being. Since we are working on a very low budget we are not be able to afford a campaign on T.V or any other medium which is expensive. However, we rely on our friends to spread the word about the availability of this absolutely free high standard training to all young men of age 16 and above. Remember that Vision Pakistan is a trust and does not expect any of its students to have to pay. If you know anyone that is struggling to find a job and would benefit with the work of Vision Pakistan then please send them our way!
