Workshop on crafts, textiles and livelihood

LOLC Micro Credit Ltd (LOMC), the microfinance arm of the LOLC Group and the SANASA Development Bank (SDB) sponsored a three-day workshop on Crafts, Textiles and Livelihood, recently at the Centre for Banking Studies of the Central Bank of Sri Lanka in Rajagiriya, ahead of the fifth annual South Asia Women's Network (SWAN) Conference which concluded in Colombo last week.

SWAN was set up to meet specific concerns relating to women and gender through art and literature, crafts and textiles, education, environment, health, media, microcredit and peacemaking by a collaborative regional network set up among nine South Asian countries - Sri Lanka, India, Bhutan, Nepal, Bangladesh, Maldives, Pakistan, Myanmar and Afghanistan. 'Gender Equity for Peace and Sustainable Development for the Women of South Asia' was this year's theme.

The pre-conference workshop conducted a 'Train the Trainers' session for the Crafts and Textiles group and the Livelihood component of SWAN. 18 foreign delegates representing member countries with 20 Sri Lankan delegates including a panel of eminent resource persons and experts were present.

Chairman of National Craft Council, Buddhi Keerthisena inaugurated the workshop.