Omega’s Business Project exists to increase the sustainability of each Omega intervention, so that any skills participants have learned can be channeled into small businesses, creating opportunities for income generation.
The Business Project was established as part of the Omega Training Centre in 2023 and provides previous participants in other Omega interventions – like sewing, embroidery, personal development, or sports – with the opportunity to turn their new skills into profitable assets. Omega always aims to empower the people participating in our projects to stand on their own, fostering self-sufficiency instead of dependency. Through a short, intensive course, students learn foundational business skills such as generating business ideas, writing a business plan, conducting market research, creating financial projections, understanding their clientele, and more.
Many families in Tajikistan have members working abroad to make ends meet. We believe that equipping people to start small businesses can not only help them create economic opportunities but also have the potential to keep families together.
Hear from our participants
A model for her children: Nargis and embroidery
Embroidery and mental health may not seem connected at first glance, but for Nargis and many other women in Omega’s Embroidery Course, it has made all the difference. “If I am at home all the time, I get so depressed – I am used to working! I know that if women have a skill, and…
More than a business: “bringing happiness, joy, and music”
“Music can bring us closer to one another,” Jawad says. “Today, whether you are a Tajik or an Afghan, when you hear a song from Adele or Elvis Presley or whoever it is that you know, even if you don’t know what they are saying, you still feel things, you are a little more joyful,…
Counting down the days
Sano had always been interested in sewing and embroidery and was excited to learn a new skill. She had looked at embroidery courses before, but they all charged a fee, which she knew she couldn’t afford each month. When her friend brought her to Nuur Women’s Center – part of Omega’s projects in Vahdat –…
Rozia the Tailor: Growing in skills, growing in business
When Rozia and her family of 7 arrived in Tajikistan – just one month before the previous government of Afghanistan fell – she wasn’t sure how they would make ends meet. While it was good to feel safe, there were still plenty of challenges they had to face. “We didn’t have a place to stay…
Husna’s story: realizing her vision
Husna – a recent graduate from Omega’s Personal Development Course – is warm, charming, and easy to talk to – but she says that hasn’t always been the case. It’s only in the last few years that she has become the person she is today. “If there was something social, I tried to avoid it,”…
“Bit by bit”
Less than a year ago, Robia had never played soccer, but you wouldn’t know it now – twice a week, she is out on the field with her team, excited to be there. “The first day that we went, none of us could really play, and we did some weird things! We were all laughing –…