In order to point out the double discrimination of women with disabilities, on both the gender and disability basis, the NGO "Women Alliance for Development" and the Center for Women with Disabilities implemented the project "Empowering Women with Disabilities in Niksic".
At the closing conference "Women Entrepreneurship and Women from Marginalized Groups" it was pointed out that although there is visible progress towards encouraging women's entrepreneurship at the national level, in the city under Trebjesa women entrepreneurs, especially those from marginalized groups are not happy with the current situation.
The Municipality of Niksic has no special programs to support women entrepreneurs, nor did it have any significant activities in this field. In addition, the Municipality has no current local plans for improving the position of persons with disabilities, nor a local gender equality plan," the organizers of the conference announced. The data of the Bureau of Labor in Niksic, when women are concerned, are also not optimistic.
"Of over 3,600 unemployed, women make up 62 percent, and over 28 percent of females have a university degree and fails to find a job for more than two years. 296 women with disabilities are looking for jobs through the Bureau of Labor in Niksic and they participate with almost 15 percent into the total unemployed female population and belong to the long-term unemployed group.
"Among the beneficiaries of loans for self-employment of the Employment Office, as it was pointed out at the conference, there are no women with disabilities, nor members of the Roma and Egyptian communities, and the curiosity is that only one Roma woman has been granted this loan for opening a hairdresser's salon. On the other hand, data at the national level is encouraging.
"Representatives of the Ministry of Economy could have heard that the number of entrepreneurs in Montenegro increased by 24 percent, which is a really significant increase since for a few years this percentage was below 10 percent and the lowest in the region. In recent years, this ministry, in cooperation with domestic and international partners, is implementing 52 different programs for entrepreneurship," the press release reads.
Presented handicrafts (Photo: Svetlana Mandic)
At the conference, seven women with disabilities, as well as members of the Roma community in Niksic, presented handicrafts, and as a significant result of the project, it was pointed out that five beneficiaries of the project started different businesses. Among them are three women with disabilities from Niksic.The project "Empowering Women with Disabilities in Niksic" was supported by the US Embassy in Podgorica.
Text by Svetlana Mandic, on July 11th, 2019, read more at Vijesti
