12 October 2004	Tuesday	26 Shaban 1425

HYDERABAD, Oct 11: Sindh Minister for Women Development Dr Saeeda Malik has said that women resource centres will be established in district headquarters of the province to make women self-sufficient by providing them training, jobs and marketing opportunities.

She was speaking at the inaugural ceremony of a computer training centre at the Special Women's Jail here on Monday. She said that in first phase, the resource centres would be established in Karachi and Sukkur and later in other districts.

The minister said that women, especially those belonging to rural area, were good at handicrafts but due to lack of marketing facilities, they did not earn enough. She said that a display centre for women's handicrafts had been established in Karachi and such display centres would also be established at Sunday Bazaars of the city.

Besides, Dr Malik said, day care centres were being established in major cities to facilitate working women. Condemning atrocities against women on the pretext of customs and traditions, she said that women complaint cells would be established in the district headquarters under the public and private partnership to provide legal and medical assistance against violence.

She said that her ministry had prepared a gender reform action plan to be launched by Sindh Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim in Karachi on Tuesday and aiming at helping women build careers.

About the establishment of computer centre in the women's prison, she said that it would enable educated women prisoners to earn livelihood after being released. She said that educational and technical training opportunities in jails would dispel the impression that prisons converted prisoners involved in minor offences into habitual criminals.

Earlier, Saira Bano of the social welfare project of a business group, which had collaborated in establishment of the computer centre, said that her NGO had established computer training centres in Thatta, Karachi and Hyderabad.

She said that in the next phase, computer centres would be established in Hala, Dhoronaro and Sukkur, especially for the poor people. Later, the minister inaugurated the computer centre and inquired about computer training programmes.

EDO, community development, Mohammad Ibrahim Qureshi; EDO, law, Shamsuddin Sehto; and officers of the prison attended the inaugural ceremony.