Nune Yediagaryan’s sewing workshop is an example of persistence and hard work. It was precisely her belief and refusal to take ‘no’ for an answer that Nune now has an established sewing workshop with state of the art sewing machines. A mother of three children has spent the past ten years sewing bedsheets and bedspreads, struggling to make ends meet when she came across UNDP’s “Integrated Support to Rural Development: Building Resilient Communities” project.

Even though the project at the time was focused on rural agriculture, she insisted that her project was worth funding as she herself could not afford the required technology. She spent a considerable amount of time and efforts with professionals to come up with a solid business proposal to present to UNDP in order to clearly communicate her goals for the future. UNDP saw not only her huge potential but also the readiness to work and provide for her family, and supplied her with industrial, computerized knitting and embroidery sewing machines. Thanks to UNDP’s support, Nune’s workshop has been working successfully for two years. She has been able to expand her activities beyond just sewing bedspreads, and now she sews custom made attires for both men and women.

In a touching interview with Nune she spoke about how the project has helped her not only financially but emotionally. It has helped her family’s peace of mind knowing that there is food on their table, a warm place to sleep and a sustainable income. She has now gained the recognition for her work and quality and this has helped her self-esteem and confidence. The machinery that UNDP provided has also helped her gain the trust and respect of her clients. Her field of work is, of course, mostly dominated by women but she is one of the most successful professionals in Noyemberyan region. Moreover, thanks to UNDP she is now in full charge of her schedule which allows her to spend more time with her children.

Nune mostly bares the full workload at the workshop with the occasional help of her sister. However, she’s optimistic that soon she will be able to expand, rent a big beautiful space and hire likely skilled women to help her. She is also proud to serve as an example and is grateful to have a chance to do what she loves under better conditions, she hopes to create workplaces for women like her and inspire her community even more.