Women At Work

Museum of Goa’s noteworthy initiative W@W aspires for an equal society, channeling the energies of creative minds in a productive direction.

- Sharada Kerkar

WOMEN at Work (W@W) is a livelihood program that empowers women from underprivileged communities by honing their creative, social and digital skills to create livelihood opportunities. I want our women to discover the same joy in independence that I have had the privilege to experience. In 2018, I began W@W with this purpose in mind.

There aren’t too many career paths laid out for women born into indigent households away from metropolitan India. “Even their expressions are stifled,” says Anamika Srivastava, project coordinator of Women @ Work, created by the non-profit, Museum of Goa Foundation. “It's taken them several months, but now they have that thing, what we call jazbah.”

W@W is currently working with 30 women in Goa, helping them enhance their skills and knowledge through community-based engagement and creative experimentation. The project aims at providing them with an alternate source of income through the sale of hand-made art products. Our ladies learn to make these pieces and are encouraged to express their creativity and engage in a marketable craft. In addition, the program undertakes digital literacy training, helping them gain crucial skills for the digital age.