Students with disabilities at the Draktsho Vocational Training Centre have been facing significant hurdles in selling their handmade products despite being equipped with vocational skills. To bridge this gap, the Youth Development Fund and Draktsho hosted a five-day Business Acceleration Workshop in Thimphu. The programme, which ended yesterday, trained 25 students from the centre’s eastern branch in Trashigang with special needs by teaching them financial literacy and digital marketing skills.
The Youth Development Fund or YDF’s Innovate Bhutan initiative said that this training builds on the first workshop held in June. The workshop, funded by UNICEF, trained the participants in using online platforms and social media to market their products.
“Entrepreneurship among people with disabilities is very low. Those who have become entrepreneurs also go through a lot of challenges in terms of managing their start-ups or businesses. In the context of Bhutan, the entrepreneurship ecosystem is evolving, and there is room for us to make it more inclusive, especially for an organisation like the Youth Development Fund, so that the ecosystem gives opportunity to youth with disabilities who want to create something and then create more employments for others,” said Kinley Tenzin, director of the Youth Development Fund.
Draktsho said that since its establishment in 2010, it has equipped many students with disabilities with vocational skills such as tailoring, weaving, and crafting. However, selling their products remains a major hurdle.
“We have been training our students in vocational skills, but they struggle to find markets for their products. This one-week workshop has shown them how and where to sell their products profitably using modern technology,” said Karma Garab Dorji, principal of Draktsho.
“Online marketing simplifies our work and saves us money. As individuals with disabilities, travelling to set up a physical shop and paying rent is a challenge. With online platforms, we can sell our products from home,” said Ugyen Pelzom, a student at Draktsho.
Among the 25 participants, three groups were selected and given seed money of Nu 100,000 for the winner and 50,000 each for the two runner-up teams. YDF explained that this funding serves as a foundation for students to develop their business ideas.
Draktsho currently trains around 65 students, with 40 already skilled in various vocational trades.
Singye Dem
Edited by Kipchu
