Empowering women to build better livelihood improves access to basic needs for their children and families. It can also reduce the risk of gender-based violence. The livelihood of women is at high risk due to the coronavirus pandemic. They have been most severely affected by the economic effects of the Covid-19. The violence against women and girls, particularly domestic violence, has intensified since the coronavirus pandemic.
The significant loss in the tika/bindi business due to the coronavirus pandemic deprived many women of their work. “There used to be annual sales of around NRs 15 lakh”, remembers Mrs. Seema Khan, chairperson of Nepal Muslim Women Welfare Society. “Asan bazaar is our major market. We sell to vendors from Asan in wholesale. There used to be good demand. But, the sales of tika/bindi dropped to zero due to the pandemic. As a result, women workers went out of work.”
Tika/bindi is one of the essential items in the makeup list of every Nepalese and Indian woman. The tika/bindi in Nepal is mostly imported from India. There is some production locally in Kathmandu. The livelihood of many Muslim women is dependent on making tika/bindi. The loss of livelihood was devastating for those poor women. The loss of income for many transformed into spikes in poverty, missed meals for children, reduced access to basic needs, increased domestic violence, and mental stress.
“My husband and I lost our livelihood due to the pandemic. It was difficult to manage rent and meals for five children”, recalls Mrs. Akhtari Khatoon. She was among many women workers who lost their jobs during the pandemic.
Mrs. Khatoon and her family live in a small rented room at Dallu, Kathmandu. Their income is not sufficient to fulfill their basic needs. They can barely manage money for the education of their two sons. Their two daughters are uneducated and help with household chores; as the education of a daughter is not a priority for many Muslim families. The mentality is that it’s not their responsibility. Many families consider girls as a burden because of the dowry problem. Parents tend to release their responsibility to others through child marriage and early marriages.
“We are in debt. My husband took a loan for the business. But due to the pandemic, we suffered a huge loss. There is a lot of pressure to repay the loan”, says Mrs. Khatoon. “I am grateful for the work of making tika/bindi. It supported us a lot. I also work as part-time domestic help. I am doing whatever work I can find. I need more money.”
Mrs. Khatoon endured a difficult time during the pandemic. The husband’s frustration due to the loss of his work and financial crisis; exacerbated through violence and mental torture towards her. The family was already going through hardship before the pandemic. The pandemic further deepened their poverty.
“I suffered a lot during COVD-19 lockdown. There was a lot of pressure on me due to the financial crisis and domestic violence. I needed a job back to overcome my situation. I am thankful for this opportunity. It helped me a lot to overcome my difficult situation” – Mrs. Akhtari Khatoon
CECI supported reviving the tika/bindi business to improve the situation of poor and marginalized Muslim women. The women were trained in making and packing tika/bindi. The focus was on improving the quality and production of new tika/bindi designs considering the latest market demand. The post-training women were distributed raw materials for making tika/bindi in their homes. The home-based tika/bindi making was helpful for women to work even during the lockdown. Women workers were able to earn 250-300 NPR per day. The income helped women like Mrs. Khatoon to support their families with basic needs. It was helpful to reduce the financial problems, reduce mental stress and cases of violence that they were experiencing.
The production of tika/bindi in new designs and good quality reduces its imports from India. It can also reduce the carbon footprint of the product. The manufacturing of tika/bindi locally generated employment opportunities for women. The support for local businesses is helpful to generate employment for women. It is essential and conducive for the local economy. The economic empowerment of women can reduce gender-based violence. It is beneficial not only for individual women but also for their children, family, and community.
The coronavirus pandemic doesn’t seem to disappear and is still looming over the tika/bindi business. The demand for tika/bindi is high during the festive seasons, but the coronavirus pandemic still affects the market. The women workers voice their concerns about the possibility of losing the work again. Mrs. Seema Khan believes, “It is necessary to increase the resilience of the business to overcome this situation.” There is a possibility of manufacturing velvet tika/bindi besides the current plastic tika/bindi. It will diversify the product and increase sales. They own machinery to manufacture velvet tika/bindi. However, the machinery remains unused due to a lack of suitable die and raw materials. The die and raw materials are available in India. The other solutions can be manufacturing additional products like Nepali fabric shoes and glass beads. Nepali fabric shoes and glass beads have high demand in the market. The addition of new products will diversify the business, generate more income opportunities, and can help to increase resilience.