Girl develops and shares skills to support other young people
After taking part in a skills training course, Urmila is working as a barista and teaches other young people how to prepare and serve coffee at a cafe in Pokhara, the tourism capital of Nepal.
From a young age, Urmila had dreamt of becoming a nurse and helping people in need of medical care. However, life took a different direction when she realised she could not afford to enroll at nursing college.
Now, after taking part in a skills training course, she is working as a barista and teaches other young people how to prepare and serve coffee at a cafe in Pokhara, the tourism capital of Nepal.
Urmila, 23, hails from Sindhuli, a small town in eastern Nepal. Her parents migrated to Pokhara with aspirations of a prosperous future. Growing up in a family of four along with her parents and younger brother, she had a happy childhood. Due to her benevolent and happy nature, she was loved and admired by everyone who met her.
My new dream is to start my own café.
However, Urmila’s family discovered that establishing themselves in a new town was not easy and they struggled financially, often finding it difficult to make ends meet.
Understanding the challenging situation her family was in, Urmila decided to put aside her hopes of continuing her studies to become a nurse. Instead, she dropped out of education and started to look for work.
After struggling to find a job due to a lack of skills and training, she heard about a free training course provided by an organisation called Right4Children which is supported by Plan International. She called in at their offices to learn more about the course, but as the next training session was not due to start for a few months she had to wait to submit her application.
“I was so happy after receiving a call inviting me for the training. I thought I would not get selected. The call itself increased my self-esteem. I felt that I had the opportunity to do something for a promising future,” explains Urmila.
Urmila opted to learn barista skills. During the 3-month training course, which was held at her local vocational college, she learnt a wide range of new skills. The friendly environment at the training centre motivated her to study hard to increase her knowledge and develop herself.
Skills training changes lives
“The training changed my life. I learnt to make coffee and also techniques for service decoration and ways to deal with customers. I was equipped with the skills to compete in the job market. I also learnt computer skills, English language, gender equality and life skills that are needed in day-to-day service,” says Urmila.
Urmila continues: “The training also looked at possible instances of violence that could occur in the workplace and the ways to deal with it. I also learnt how to manage stress, methods of proper documentation and how to present yourself confidently during interviews. The instructor always motivated us to give our best. It was a good learning opportunity for me.”
Following the training, Urmila was assigned to a restaurant for work experience. Her employer was impressed by her confidence and skills and she mastered all aspects of her work in 1 month, however, the restaurant was a fair distance from her home, and she had difficulty accessing a vehicle at night to return home.
New opportunities
Aside from this issue, she was able to hone her cooking skills and learnt some new recipes. It was during her work experience that she received a job offer from her neighbour to work at her friend’s cafe. She readily accepted the role and started working at the Tasty Wings Cafe for NRP. 15,000 ($138) per month.
Urmila says her new employers are very helpful, always ready to give her suggestions and new ideas. They have even made arrangements for her transport home at night, when it gets late. The fact that she was handed over all responsibility for the running of the cafe after just 2 days shows the confidence and trust her new employees have in her abilities.
Recently, Urmila started teaching at the cafe and her employer helps to find the students for her. In the beginning, she was worried that she would not be confident enough to give proper guidance to her students, but gradually her self-belief increased, and even better, she receives an extra Nrs.1000 a month for conducting this training.
Urmila says she now sees her future as a barista and that it brings her immense pleasure to see people enjoy coffee made by her. Her family are also very happy and proud of her hard work.
“My new dream is to start my own café. I want to train girls and women to become baristas which will help them to become independent working women.”
About the project
Right4Children is implementing the Promoting Young Women in Employment in Pokhara project with funding and technical support from Plan International. The project aims to equip young women with marketable skills and help them to make the most of emerging job opportunities.
Right4Children is implementing the project in close coordination and collaboration with private sector training providers. The project aims to train 800 young women like Urmila in marketable job skills, life skills, basic computer skills, and basic English language so they can find decent paid employment.
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