With the purpose of identifying and orienting women in the right direction, workshops were organised by EDII in the Karnali panchayat on entrepreneurship and skill training in the manufacturing of sanitation and hygiene products, and food processing, with support from IDBI Bank under its CSR initiative. The process of identification and planning started with Dr Saji Kumar, Faculty, EDII visiting the Karnali panchayat, which includes Karnali, Pipaliya, Vadia and Baglipura, on September 23, 2016 to conduct a baseline survey. The broader aim was to sensitise women regarding the need to acquire vocational skills, necessary for self-employment and enhancing income.
Eighty eight women met Dr Kumar in the village and were introduced to the EDI’s role and commitment in developing vocational skills and entrepreneurial mindset. Nineteen from Karnali, 30 from Pipaliya, eight from Vadia and 31 from Baglipura villages attended the meeting. The discussions were focused on the need to acquire vocational skills among women in order to make them empowered and employable. The possible business opportunities and ideas for micro-start-ups in the village or nearby areas of Karnali and Chandod were also discussed. Each participant’s career aspirations were noted and recorded, to identify the kind of specialised training required for them.
Group discussions and interviews were scheduled to test women’s awareness about earning opportunities and their willingness to undergo skill training in any preferred trade. The questionnaire comprised several trades viz. pickles and papad, stitching/embroidery, dairy products, bakery business, beautician, soap manufacturing, imitation jewellery, soft toys and any other business they would like to acquire skill for.
Survey summary: Total preference for each trade
Sr no. |
Trades |
Karnali |
Baglipura |
Pipaliya |
Vadia |
Total
preference |
1 |
Pickles and papad |
2 |
2 |
20 |
0 |
24 |
2 |
Stitching/embroidery |
10 |
13 |
22 |
1 |
46 |
3 |
Dairy products |
0 |
13 |
24 |
6 |
43 |
4 |
Bakery business |
0 |
0 |
8 |
0 |
8 |
5 |
Beautician |
6 |
16 |
24 |
3 |
49 |
6 |
Soap and detergent |
9 |
16 |
22 |
6 |
53 |
7 |
Imitation jewellery |
0 |
0 |
12 |
0 |
12 |
8 |
Soft toys |
0 |
0 |
11 |
0 |
11 |
9 |
Other businesses |
1 |
0 |
8 |
0 |
9 |
Following the survey, several workshops were planned:
October 17, 2016: EDII Faculty visited Karnali to interact with women. Sixteen women from Karnali and 26 from Pipaliya participated in the session.
November 7-8, 2017: EDII faculty visited Karnali and Pipaliya again, for entrepreneurship orientation of the women, especially the demonstration of the manufacturing of cleaning agents. Thirteen women from Karnali village and 15 from Pipaliya participated.
December 14-15 and January 4-6: EDII faculty and a specialist trainer in manufacturing of 200 gruh udyog products, visited Karnali with an objective of providing entrepreneurship orientation, by conducting hands-on experience of manufacturing sanitation and personal hygiene (herbal phenyl and shampoo) compounds and food processing (tomato ketchup, mixed fruit, dabeli masala and spiced garlic paste), with a broader aim of sensitising women regarding the need to acquire vocational skills that are necessary for self-employment and income growth.