Page 76 - Reliance Foundation Annual Report 2022-23
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74 Women Empowerment Reliance Foundation | Annual Report 2022-23 75
Connecting
women,
transforming
communities
WomenConnect who were trained through these projects have also The story of Maruvi Sangkhro from Maruvi participated in a skill enhancement training on
Challenge India reported increased awareness of and access to digital Manipur baking, and tested the newly learnt recipes within her
tools and services, behavioural changes in community network. On receiving a positive response, she started
around their use of technology, increased livelihood Cakes, cupcakes, pastries, cookies, pickles and jams-
Reliance Foundation, in partnership with the United and entrepreneurial opportunities and awareness of a separate counter for bakery items at the grocery store.
States Agency for International Development financial products and Government schemes. these are just a handful of items one can buy at Maruvi With the new products in place, the next step was to
(USAID), announced the first round of the Sangkhro’s grocery store in Harkui Kathe, Ukhrul,
connect with more customers. The digital literacy
WomenConnect Challenge India in 2020 to identify, Manipur. The story of how the 23-year old started a
To watch the video, please scan
nurture and scale a new set of innovative, scalable, and bakery business could be an inspiration to many, training helped her in expanding her customer base
sustainable digital solutions. The project is designed to The outcomes from the first round demonstrate and increasing profits. She also used Instagram and
enhance women and girl’s access to digital technology the range of Indian organisations who recognise especially existing women entrepreneurs in WhatsApp to connect to customers who were not only
in India, which can drive positive health, education, the importance of closing the gender digital divide. her community. from her own locality but also from other villages and
and livelihood outcomes. Through implementation Building on the momentum from Round 1, Maruvi’s journey started in 2021 as a new-age
during 2022-23, 10 not-for-profit organisations were Reliance Foundation and USAID launched cities across Manipur. She even created a business card
supported with grants of up to Rs. 1 crore from Round 2 of the WomenConnect Challenge India in entrepreneur when she ventured into a home-grown online to reach her customers.
Reliance Foundation. Some key focus areas of these business of processed and baked food items. She had
October 2022, to continue the mission of bridging the For ease and safety, Maruvi now ensures that all
projects included enhancing digital literacy for
gender digital divide. a grocery store which was sufficient to earn three payments are made through digital platforms like
low-literacy women through edutainment-based square meals a day but not enough to expand her
courseware, building entrepreneurship skills and Over the next round of grants, Reliance Foundation Google Pay. Through the financial literacy training she
providing mentorship and value-chain linkage support will support up to 10 innovative projects that empower business and afford a better lifestyle. In pursuit of a learnt how to better manage the inflow and outflow of
for women dairy farmers, and app-based solutions for women via access to and the use of digital technology brighter future, she came across FWWB’s (Friends of the business, and with time, she is hopeful to make
livelihood information etc. Working with Self Help to drive positive development and livelihood outcomes Women's World Banking) training programme under good use of digital platforms that will make
Groups (SHGs), tribal communities and young women, for themselves and their families, with grants up to
the project so far has reached and created sustainable Rs. 1 Crore each. Over 250 organisations submitted the WCC India project that imparted training to 3,579 record-keeping easier. Starting her food processing and
impact in the lives of 3,27,429 women and girls directly proposals from across the length and breadth of women on digital literacy, financial literacy and skill bakery business with Rs. 650, she was delighted to
and indirectly, spread over 17 states of India. Women the country. enhancement in Manipur, Gujarat and Maharashtra. receive the first order of Rs. 1,200 over WhatsApp.
