banglanatak dot com experience with Young Women Social Entrepreneurship Development Programme

Empowering women economically is essential to realise both women’s rights and to achieving broader developmental goals such as economic growth, poverty reduction, health, education and welfare. Women empowerment is essentially about economic independences, building skills and attitudes to negotiate their rights. Based on these thought, a UNESCO and UN ECOSOC accredited social enterprise banglanatak dot com joined hands with Diageo and British Council, India aiming at empowering young women and developing the spirit of Social Entrepreneurship across India for taking their initiative ‘Young Women Social Entrepreneurship Development’ to the grassroots of West Bengal.

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It is a ground reality that only vocational training is not adequate for women to make foray into business. “Rural
women get very less opportunity to come out of their household and become financially independent. We consulted various NGOs working in partnership with NABARD and Women Development Undertaking of the Government of West Bengal to select the beneficiaries” said Ananya Bhattacharyya, Director, banglanatak dot com.

Banglanatak dot com trained total 107 women in the age group of 18-40 years from marginalised communities of Bankura, Howrah and Malda districts of West Bengal. The goal was to reach out and encourage them to become grass root social entrepreneurs. The intervention focused on women who are beneficiaries of livelihood training under various government schemes like Swabalamban, Swayamsiddha, SHG Cluster Development etc. Workshops were conducted with the women at Chhatna and Kenjakura in Bankura, Amta in Howrah and Malda town to train the women on various alternative livelihood skills like embroidery, animal husbandry, fishing, vegetable farming, tailoring, etc. The workshops have resulted in the following immediate impacts:

  • The women developed better ideas on adding to their product variety and developing new markets.
  • The women got motivated towards entrepreneurship and self reliance.
  • In Bankura, 36 women have already submitted business proposals for bank loans to start their own social enterprises and employing women from their neighbourhoods.
  • Women understood ways of accessing financial assistance.
  • The workshops facilitated networking with stakeholders in enterprise development. The participants understood the need and importance to introduce a change in the society in the form of social entrepreneurship.

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“Empowerment at the grass root, especially of women is much more than the figures that we churn out to bolster our arguments” said Ananya, “it is about social change, about the building of a Nation, one woman at a time. For when the woman is empowered, her family benefits which unleashes a multiplier that turn ripples into tidal waves. It is a matter of great pride for us in at banglanatak dot com to be a part of the litmus that changes lives – the force that creates the initial ripples.”

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Banglanatak_logo_400x400banglanatak dot com is a social enterprise working across India with a mission to foster pro-poor growth and protection of rights of women, children and indigenous communities. They specialise in communication for development (C4D) using theatre based techniques and developing community led creative industries based on intangible cultural heritage like performing arts and crafts.

For More information Contact: http://www.banglanatak.com/

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Comments 3

  • A Follow up story will be very interesting. Like how do these women do after they are trained? Are they able to stand on their feet in the socioeconomic context? What additional inputs do the need to surmount the north-south divide? What impact do they have on their families and their respective communities? How can such programmes be strengthened further? More importantly what can we do to strengthen organisations like banglanaak dot com who are doing such excellent work where it matters – in the grassroots? Will watch this space with interest.

  • thank you. am forwarding your comment to bangla natok dot com. am sure they will have a few answers for you – editor