Indian Economy News

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Rural Livelihood Mission and Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) signed Memorandum of Association (MoU) to mark a significant milestone in the journey of women-led enterprises

A historic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed by the Small Industries Development Bank of India (SIDBI) and Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana—National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM) under the Ministry of Rural Development. This MoU represents a significant turning point in the development of women-led enterprises in India.

In the presence of Secretary of Rural Development, Mr. Shailesh Kumar Singh, and Chairman & Managing Director of SIDBI, Mr. Sivasubramanian Ramann, DAY-NRLM and SIDBI signed the two-year-long Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). The paper was signed by DAY-NRLM's Additional Secretary for Rural Livelihoods, Mr. Charanjit Singh, and SIDBI's Chief General Manager, Dr. S. S. Acharya. Mrs. Smriti Sharan and Mrs. Swati Sharma, Joint Secretaries for Rural Livelihoods, Director for Rural Livelihoods, Mr. Raghevendra Pratap Singh, and General Manager SIDBI, Mr. Saurav Bajpai, were among the other dignitaries.

Through this strategic alliance, the knowledge bases of SIDBI and DAY-NRLM are combined to develop a game-changing programme that encourages women-led businesses among seasoned Self-Help Group (SHG) members. This collaboration's main goal is to showcase practical initiatives that create a trustworthy and considerate framework for women entrepreneurs' (WEs') capacity building. Additionally, it seeks to build a thorough framework for new financial schemes and products as well as to institutionalise standard protocols, methods, and procedures for streamlined access to formal finance.

Some of the key outcomes of this collaboration involve enhancement in the capacity and ability of State Rural Livelihood Missions (SRLM) teams to promote the graduation of seasoned SHG members into microentrepreneurs, the establishment of a reliable and sensitive support architecture for women-led enterprises, involving a network of filed cadres, mentors, and experts.

This also resulted in the implementation of various standard protocols within DAY-NRLM to support women-led enterprises, the formation of partnerships with financial institutions, etc.

This strategic alliance, which focuses on expanding the entrepreneurial landscape's inclusivity and supporting women-led firms, reflects the government's commitment to women's economic empowerment and entrepreneurship. This programme aims to provide new opportunities for women entrepreneurs by merging the strengths of SIDBI and DAY-NRLM, thereby promoting the country's economic growth and prosperity.

Disclaimer: This information has been collected through secondary research and IBEF is not responsible for any errors in the same.