Background

While women are an essential part of the textile industry of India, there has been a significant reduction in the number of female workers in the textile industry in recent years. Due to gendered access to information and opportunities, women, especially from underserved communities, are unable to join and succeed in this industry. India’s female labour force in the textile industry has seen a decrease from 31% in 2000 to 24% in 2021 due to unequal access to resources. Furthermore, the industry has seen a rise in a skewed number of male supervisors which perpetuates the long-standing beliefs that men are better at such roles than women. 

Such facts are extremely disheartening as the textile and weaving industry of India was a largely women-run organization until a few decades ago.  Another issue that impairs this population is a lack of knowledge about financial skills and sustainability practices in the textile industry, leading to an unaware consumer base. Educating women and the larger consumer base on the role of technology in developing sustainable textile practices is key to empowering this industry. 

To bring about positive change, Kaari Naari aims to increase access to the textile industry for women through layered interventions. Through these actions, we hope to improve the livelihood of women from underserved communities, providing them with opportunities to become financially and professionally independent. Furthermore, we aim to create a conscious developer and consumer base by spreading information and awareness on attitudes toward local and regional textile and weaving products.