Sherpuur Correspondent: Fifty underprivileged women in Sherpur Sadar Upazila received sewing machines on Thursday under the Local Government Division’s Upazila Development Assistance programme for the 2025–26 fiscal year, aiming to promote self-employment and economic empowerment.

The distribution ceremony was held at the Sherpur Sadar Upazila Parishad auditorium, where Sherpur-1 MP Hafez Md. Rashedul Islam Rashed attended as the chief guest. The programme was presided over by Upazila Nirbahi Officer (UNO) Asma Binte Rafiq.

The beneficiaries were selected from 14 unions of Sherpur Sadar Upazila, with priority given to poor and disadvantaged women to help them become financially self-reliant.

Addressing the event, MP Rashed said the initiative was designed to create employment opportunities for rural women and encourage entrepreneurship. “These sewing machines are not merely gifts; they are tools that can change the future of families. A woman can become an entrepreneur through a single sewing machine and improve her livelihood,” he said.

Among others, District Jamaat Ameer Maulana Md. Hafizur Rahman, district Majlish-e-Shura member Dr. Md. Anowar Hossain, and Jamaat leaders Maulana Nurul Amin, Maulana Ataur Rahman, Maulana Nur-e-Alam Siddique, and Maulana Abdus Sobhan addressed the programme.

Several beneficiaries, including Rojina, Shahida, Barsha, and Parvin, expressed gratitude, saying the sewing machines would enable them to earn an income from home and better support their families, including their children’s education and household expenses.