Sulhiya’s Story - Tajikistan
Growing up in the Gorno Badakhshan region of Tajikistan, Sulhiya was known her for compassion and outgoing personality. When she was looking for direction after graduating in 2007, her family encouraged her to pursue teaching, which was a natural fit for her skillset.
Sulhiya immediately developed a deep connection with her students and picked up on a subtle trend among many of them: She noticed that students were embarrassed about their uniforms, which had become tattered with overuse. She also knew that she could help.
Sulhiya was an experienced tailor with a passion for sewing. As a teenager, she would often mend clothes for herself, her family, and friends.
Although she had the desire to help, and the necessary skills, Sulhiya struggled to figure out how she could focus on sewing uniforms while also managing a demanding teaching schedule. Because she was vocal about her vision, she was soon connected to Central Asia Institute-Tajikistan (CAIT). When she attended their first Business Literacy training, all the pieces began to fall into place. The CAIT program provided Sulhiya with the necessary equipment to get started, and the business acumen to see it to fruition.
Energized by her initial progress, Sulhiya worked with CAIT to apply for and attend further training through Accelerate Prosperity in Dushanbe.
Today, Sulhiya owns a sewing workshop in Porshinev village of Shugnan District. Her main outputs were initially traditional dresses. However, during the past few years she was working alongside CAIT she expanded her services to include producing high-quality and long-lasting school uniforms helping the children she used to teach.
She is incredibly grateful for her education in entrepreneurship and continues to use the skills she learnt to help her business grow and benefit her community. When asked about her next steps Sulhiya is excited to start formally branding her business, learn digital marketing, and create more jobs for women and girls.
2 responses to “Sulhiya’s Story – Tajikistan”
Marvelous story! Empowering women to be and do more and thus helping everyone to gain!
Thank you, Constance! We love this story too and are so inspired by what Sulhiya is doing in her community.