Page 54 - Reliance Foundation Annual Report 2021-22
P. 54

Empowering



              women and girls






              Towards achieving the UN SDGs, Reliance Foundation has been striving across all its core focus areas to support
              women across India to achieve their potential and gain agency over decisions that affect their lives. This is being
              done through various interventions including leadership capacity building, digital literacy, employment and skills
              development, improving women’s health and enhancing women’s opportunities in education, sports and arts.













              Bridging the gender-digital                         Her Circle: a digital platform


              divide: Reliance Foundation  for women
              and USAID WomenConnect                                Her Circle is a digital movement for Indian women that
                                                                  aims to be inclusive, collaborative, diverse, interactive
              Challenge India                                     and socially conscious. As a safe space for women’s
                                                                  growth, it seeks to bridge the digital gender divide by
              Reliance Foundation is committed to ensuring that   informing, empowering and engaging women. It was
              women are actively involved in development gains    launched in March 2021 and is already recognised as
              through digital technology, which is an increasingly   India’s fastest-growing digital platform for women. In
              important tool for education, financial inclusion,   the second half of FY21-22, it achieved 370 per cent
              entrepreneurship, civic participation and information.    growth in users, with a 345 per cent growth in
              In partnership with USAID, the WomenConnect         session numbers. Combined with its social handles,
              Challenge India aims to identify and nurture innovative   the platform now has a cumulative reach of 50 million.
              solutions which promote the use of technology among
              women to deliver positive health, education and     In celebration of its first anniversary, Reliance
              livelihood outcomes for themselves and their families.   Foundation has announced that the app and the
              To this end, Reliance Foundation has announced      platform will now be multilingual, beginning with
              grants (ranging from Rs. 75 lakh to Rs. 1 crore)    a Hindi-language launch by  Chairperson Smt. Nita
              for 10 not-for-profit organisations over a period of    Ambani. This new step will help Her Circle extend its
              12-15 months.                                       reach and support to more women. As a platform that
                                                                  fosters meaningful conversations and strengthens
              The focus is on building entrepreneurship skills,   bonds by bringing women of shared interests together,
              enhancing digital literacy for low-literacy users   Her Circle has partnered with FICCI and has been
              through edutainment-based courseware and providing   empaneled with NITI Aayog and UN Women. Through
              mentorship and value-chain linkage support for women   this digital platform, Reliance Foundation is now
              in agriculture. Reliance Foundation has specifically   striving to build a pan-India network of women who
              focussed on working with Self-Help Groups, tribal   can empower other women and support women-led
              communities and young women. Reliance Foundation    enterprises.
              has already reached over 3 lakh women and girls
              across 17 states through these initiatives.         Promoting engagement
                                                                  In FY21-22, Her Circle expanded its network of
                                                                  women through high-quality content, including
                                                                  inspirational videos with stories of real women, life-skill
                                                                  enhancement guides and masterclasses conducted by
                                                                  experts. It gave women a platform to narrate and share
                                                                  their stories of strength and empowerment.
                                                                  In addition to this, the programme sought to empower
                                                                  women through a series of ‘How To’ videos that guided
                                                                  them through practical life skills such as changing
                                                                  a car tyre and riding a bike. Her Circle also focuses
                                                                  on giving women access to resources to ensure their
                                                                  safety and security. These include multiple toolkits on
                                                                  suicide helplines, bystander response resources, digital
                                                                  economy resources and legal aid hotlines.

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