Economic empowerment for tribal women -Role Models

I'm delighted to share the story of our early beneficiary adivasi woman, Kamli and Jamani who are fantastic examples of a life transformed thanks to your donation support!

Kamli, a resident of Karjgav village, used to work a daily low wage job in a large company. However Kamli had bigger dreams. She heard about the local agarbatti (incense sticks) making course and gave up her day job to join it. Kamli became a member of the local women’s cooperative and decided to purchase 2 cows on loan under a subsidised government scheme. She underwent training for dairy farming as well as for organic vegetable farming, facilitated by ACT under the livelihood empowerment project for tribal women. Her dairy business became so successful that her husband quit his job and joined her.  Together they began producing vermi compost and used that to cultivate paddy. But Kamli was ambitious. She purchased poultry under another government scheme and started selling a full range of products such as compost, vegetables and eggs to her customers, creating and controlling the entire supply chain. From her humble beginnings, Kamli has become one of ACT’s most inspiring examples, displaying a spirit of initiative and entrepreneurship, paving the way for many other women to do the same. We hope to produce many more success stories like Kamli’s!

Jamani is from Rudana village in Dadra & Nagar Haveli. Like most adivasi women, she is marginalised and finds it difficult to get paid work, leading to severe hardships for her and her family. Desperate to earn some income, she left her house, built a small hut in the fields and moved there in order to cultivate vegetables. She joined ACT’s training program for organic vegetable farming. She now sells her produce in her village. Her papayas in particular are a hit with customers! She works with her husband and they are planning to expand their farm and grow their business. We’re so grateful to our donors for transforming Jamani’s life. Your contributions are what make success stories like these possible!

More than 75 women are being helped similarly to get skills training for Dairy farming, organic vegetable farming or poultry farming. They have also visited successful farms and learned how to generate income from their micro entrepreneurial activities. They are earning more and saving more than before. Therefore, they are able to take micro loans for additional purchase of animal livestock or feed supplies or important household expenses like children's education, vehicle purchase, etc.

Capacity Buidling: During our sensitisation workshops, our adivasi women beneficiaries shared their life's trials and challenges from which we gained the insight that the women are under tremendous strain and pressure in their homes, due to husband's waywardness, teenager's delinquencies, youth suicides, children's slow learning issues, etc. and therefore unable to cope and move forward successfully. Hence, in collaboration with Mental Health Category expert NGO - Ummeed, ACT launched a community mental health training program in Feb 2019, enrolled supervisors Sarita, Thopi and other women and youth of the communities to become  resource persons, providing guidance, counselling and hand holding to the beneficiaries and enable them to expand their capacities for earning and social participation more fully. This will improve outcomes in the lives of the women and their income generation and empowerment will increase substantially.

Feeling privileged to be invited to meet the Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi, in Silvassa - by Dadra & Nagar Haveli Government, as a Adivasi / tribal women empowerment NGO representative.

ACT is making a Difference! Thank you for helping us to make a visible impact! Our Project Samruddhi Supervisors - Sarita and Thopi are in the pic too, presenting the Warli Painting on behalf of our Adivasi/ tribal women’s cooperative of Khanvel! 

ACT is in the News: The government of Dadra and Nagar Haveli is collaborating with ACT & our implementation partner Premankur to spread awareness and help build vocational skills capacity among Adivasi villages. Our supervisors also spread awareness of government resources and one stop centres for Adivasi women’s security and care. This is a great showcase for effective Government and NGO partnership for women empowerment!

We are conducting Capacity Building Workshops on Confidence Building, Financial awareness, entrepreneursjip and Awareness of Government schemes through Resource persons from across the neighbouring states of Gujarat and Maharashtra. 

Exposure visits to the Dairy, Poultry and Agriculture Centre - Krishi Vigyan Kendra, Valsad, Gujarat helped the GG Samruddhi beneficiaries enhance their learning by experience. 

We decided to catalyse our efforts on Project Samruddhi (Livelihoods) by working on the enablers that will address the challenges and ensure faster and better outcomes in the areas of Adivasi/ tribal community’s women and youth’s mental health and empowerment. Consequently, Project Samruddhi beneficiaries' mental well being and project outcomes will be positively impacted. 

In February 2019, we finalized 19-20 candidates across DNH adivasi /tribal villages as trainees for the Community Mental Health Training Program by Ummeed CDC - highly reputed non-profit foundation, have scrapped their own in house training in favour of doing an offsite training throughout the year (February 2019 – January 2020), to facilitate best participation of the trainees. At the end of the year long training these participants will be fully certified Mental Health Counsellors. 

Lastly, a significant development is that our Project Samruddhi has been shortlisted for the Global Giving special fundraising Campaign around Women's Day from Feb 28 - March 14 with Bonus Day on Women's Day - March 8. It is called the Girl Fund Campaign.

We urge you, dear donors, to become our advocates and spread word in your circle of influence to help the tribal underprivileged women of India that are eager to escape their destitution and emerge victorious and empowered. Please let us know if you can champion our cause and we shall work with together to make a bigger difference. Thank you very much!