BUTA Arts & Sweets

Sara founded BUTA Art & Sweets to tackle the issue of unemployment in underprivileged communities, particularly vulnerable women. In Azerbaijan, there is no specific constitutional protection for the rights of women with disabilities (1). Sara’s personal research uncovered that 95% of women with ‘special needs’ are unemployed.

She began her organisation with a personal investment of 160 manat. The principle is to provide vocational skills training to women who are domestic care-givers, and women with disabilities, to financially empower them. 

Sara has organised over 20 programmes, led by women, for 17 women who are part of the organisation. Using the skills they learn from this programme, and with access to the 60 partner organisations Sara has identified, the participants earn around 200 manat per month from their produce. 

An additional 15 women from outside the programme have also attended workshops to develop their skill base, receiving the same access to education without the in-kind social support which Sara offers to the regular programme participants (e.g. travel discounts). 

This has all been achieved with no grants or sponsorship, growing organically to become one of the first organisations in Azerbaijan to focus on this issue. Sara hopes to have an indirect and exponential impact on cultural attitudes to disabilities and gender issues. 

Sara is also promoting the concept of social business in the country, where there is currently no definition in official legislation. Her proposal is currently being pushed through the government, and could have substantial long-term contribution to social investment in Azerbaijan.

Sara’s attendance at the One Young World Summit in 2018 has altered how her work is perceived locally, as it has received global recognition. She has reached bigger prospective partners as a consequence, and is on the verge of establishing 20 new business partnerships to accelerate her work.