KARACHI, Aug 21: National Foods Limited — a listed company on the food sector — said it was doing more than making spices, pickles and a lot of profit. At a prize distribution ceremony held on Saturday, the company said it had invested Rs0.2 million and sacrificed scores of labours’ working hours in imparting education to its workforce. The result was a raise in adult literacy level in the company to 96 per cent, from 60 per cent in two years.

In a press statement, National Foods said that the company sponsors had committed themselves to educating the workforce at the time of company formation, back in 1970. The company said that chairman Abdul Majeed had drawn up the “Adult literacy programme” in association with an NGO — New Century Education. NCE trained 20 officers and supervisors of the company’s packing, store, salt plant, grinding and paste plant, as teacher/trainers.

Each trainer was responsible to make his batch of ten “students” literate. The workers who fell in the age bracket between 20 and 58 were taught to read and write Urdu — beginning with Urdu Qaida — five days a week. At the end of the 60 hours, four stage course, workers were able to read newspapers and the company manual, the company claimed.

Out of a total of 200 “students”, eight could not rise above level one, due to their advanced age. The language was also a barrier as most of the workers came from Northern areas and interior of Sindh.

But what if some workers were not inclined to learn? There were no choices. The company made it mandatory for all permanent employees to enrol — if they wanted to keep their jobs. And all 200 did. Their “ordeal” looks to be far from over for the company press release said in the end: “National Foods is planning to teach its workers simple English in the next phase.”