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MPOWERED

What happens when the world’s poorest women have a wealth of information at their fingertips? Tata Communications and TUIF partnered to put the power of mobile technology in the hands of women in ultra-poverty who are in the process of developing their livelihoods.
With Tata Communications’ support, we have implemented two phases of the Mobile Connections to Promote Women’s Economic Development (MPOWERED) project since 2016. We are now in Phase III of the project.
We are supporting 2800 women in Odisha and Jharkhand build sustainable and climate resilient livelihoods. By the end of this phase, we expect that participants will see increased income, greater integration into social and economic structures, and increased social status.
Alongside training on entrepreneurial skills, our team is teaching participants how to use digital tools to enhance their access to information and services. Participants are also learning how to mitigate and adapt their livelihoods to the effects of climate change. Additionally, we are working with existing and newly formed group enterprises to strengthen them and promote sustainability.

Our Approach:

Phase III of MPOWERED supports three cohorts of ultra-poor women participants.
Cohort I works with 1300 women to enhance their productivity, resilience, and market engagement through collectivization.
Cohort II works with another 1300 women to integrate climate adaptive livelihood practices and increased usage of technology.
Cohort III works with 200 women members of the Juang Tribe (a Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Group in Odisha) to develop their skills and livelihoods. We also connect them to social safety net programs offered by the government, banks, and other institutions.

A cadre of young women volunteers from the local community known as Smart Sakhis (Digital Coach) guide participants from all three cohorts through a structured coaching and mentoring process.

Outreach

Participants Women Smart Sakhis Locations
2800
100%
136
2 States, Jharkhand and Odisha

Project Partners:

TUIF partners with Tata Communications, state branches of India’s National Rural Livelihoods Mission (the world’s largest anti-poverty organization), and local NGOs to create and implement MPOWERED.

Sightsavers India

Trickle UP has been committed to strengthening inclusion of people living in ultra-poverty as well as people with disabilities through its Graduation programme. Trickle Up India Foundation and Sightsavers India collaborated for implementing an economic empowerment and livelihood project for PwDs to ensure improved livelihoods, economic empowerment and greater social inclusion. Trickle Up is providing technical support towards adaptation, implementation and scaling up of disability inclusive livelihood program in rural context through graduation approach.
In this pilot programme, 1000 participants with disabilities from Amta I block in Howrah district of West Bengal, India will be targeted to increase their social and economic improvement through disability inclusive Graduation approach. In West Bengal, Sightsavers is working closely with West Bengal State Rural Livelihood Mission and implementing a disability inclusive economic empowerment project. With support from SHG Federation, PwDs are being identified, enrolling them to SHGs, ensuring their access to finance and supporting them to undertake livelihood activities. Sightsavers India and Trickle Up team have explored feasibilities for a technical collaboration to improve quality of project implementation.

Our Approach:

Trickle Up will support Sightsavers India by developing customized training modules, implementation tools and job aids, providing training, capacity building to program staff and coaches to improve the quality of the services being provided to the PwDs. Trickle Up plans to refine & strengthen the M&E system for the project to ensure monitoring the quality of the program implementation and support in design of tools for tracking the progress of the PwD participant towards graduation.

Outreach

Participants Women Smart Sakhis Locations
1000
100%
West Bengal

Project Partners:

Understanding of vulnerability and the multidimensionality of poverty of PwDs, Trickle Up India Foundation teamed with Sightsavers India for their economic empowerment and to ensure their inclusion in development.

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