Rumia Begum

CORR – The Jute Works (CJW) was started in 1973 by CARITAS/Bangladesh, a Catholic service organization, to help rural women provide supplemental income for their families. CJW continues to bring about qualitative changes in women’s lives by providing them with opportunity for economic viability and social progress.

At present, 3,515 artisans, who are members of 140 artisan groups, are supported by CJW’s work. CJW provides product design assistance, access to a credit fund, and trainings that deal with issues that affect artisans lives, like leadership development, women’s rights, HIV-AIDS awareness, and accounting. CJW also uses part of the funds from craft sales to provide educational support to poor students who would not otherwise have a chance to attend school.

Many of CJW’s products are made from jute, a sustainable fiber found abundantly in Bangladesh. CJW has been working with jute farmers who had begun to abandon their harvest because of low prices. Together, they are developing production of high quality, organic, fair trade jute that will benefit CJW and small farmers.

Rumia Begum (member of the Taltoli Mohila Samity women’s group) says, "Women should be aware of their rights.” She thinks that women can survive alone through income generation, if they have good markets. Rumia thinks that CJW has changed the lives of many destitute rural women.

SERRV has been working the CJW since 1981, purchasing terracotta and jute products.