Mumbai, Maharashtra, India:
As we celebrate International Women’s History Month, Vastu Housing Finance and BharatCares’ Oonchee Udaan Program has successfully trained and empowered over 575 existing and aspiring women micro-entrepreneurs in Enterprise Development, Financial Literacy, and Digital Literacy. Oonchee Udaan Program is a CSR initiative of Vastu Housing Finance that aims to create a cadre of professional women entrepreneurs as a catalyst for economic and social change in society, thereby promoting women’s empowerment and ensuring sustainable livelihoods.
“The Oonchee Udaan Program showcases Vastu’s commitment towards financial inclusion and supporting entrepreneurship among women from less privileged backgrounds. This paves the way for micro-entrepreneurial women to become independent, empower other women through employment opportunities, and be an inspiration to other women in the community.” Sandeep Menon, Founder, MD and CEO, Vastu Housing Finance Corporation.
BharatCares, an NGO based in Ahmedabad, is an implementation partner in this journey, with a vision to convert women entrepreneurs’ aspirations into inspirations. The training was conducted in four locations – Ahmedabad, Pune, Udaipur, and Noida. The program mobilized over 1300 women, and 575 trainees were selected based on various socio-economic and vulnerability parameters.
The program’s training methodology consisted of a mixed bag of theory and practical sessions consisting of group tasks, videos, homework sheets, and talks by successful women entrepreneurs.
Out of the 575 trainees, 315 women were selected and trained in the Business Plan module, wherein they prepared their business plans and pitched the same to experts and successful women entrepreneurs, similar to Shark Tank. Based on their pitch, need, and depth of the problem they are dealing with, 226 meritorious women were selected. Each of them will receive material support of INR 20,000-50,000 based on their business plans, which will help them embark on the journey of being professional and independent entrepreneurs.
“Holistic development can only be achieved when you empower the most marginalized women in the community. Hence, a big focus of our program is to build the resilience of women micro-entrepreneurs through regular training, capacity building and material support and peer network measures aimed at helping the women achieve economic empowerment,” said Bhomik Shah, Managing Trustee of BharatCares.
In International Women’s History Month, let us celebrate the remarkable achievements of these 575 women micro-entrepreneurs and the efforts of Vastu Housing Finance and BharatCares’ Oonchee Udaan Program in empowering and enabling them to become successful and independent entrepreneurs.
link
More Stories
Bajaj Housing Finance: Unlocking Growth: Bajaj Housing Finance set for IPO as it eyes market expansion
Inside Housing – Comment – We now need funding solutions to make housing a lever for economic growth
Groundbreaking held for affordable housing in Waikoloa