Over the past 18 months, Rahma Couture in Diourbel (located in the center of Senegal) has trained young women in textile through tailoring, moving beyond basic cut-make-trim (CMT) operations to offer comprehensive skills in garment production. Unlike traditional African models, Rahma Couture focuses on the local market, while respecting international social, environmental and product quality standards. The plant is now negotiating contracts to produce school uniforms and workwear, shirts and other garments for national customers.
The factory faced many challenges to scale operations and meet rising demand. Thus Rahma Couture needed professionalization of its workflow and adaptation of its production processes.Thanks to the support of GIZ Program Invest for Jobs Senegal, M. Asnake Worku, a textile technical expert from Ethiopia was on the field, in Diourbel, during the month of September 2025 to provide a technical training.
To move from custom production to mass production, a strategy for adapting production lines was implemented using a skills-based task allocation (task segmentation, skills matching, performance grid). The training also covered infrastructure modernization and safety considerations.
The main objective achieved is operational efficiency and real-time quality measurement, enabling rapid adjustments and continuous improvement. In November, 45 students celebrated the successful completion of their two-year training to become dressmakers.