I am Woman Hear Me Roar, and Watch Me Start a Business!

An old proverb states, “Give a woman a seed and she will grow a forest, give a woman an opportunity and she will build a future.” In Wayanad, Profugo is doing both of these things. The Entrepreneurship Training Program is giving women the tools, resources, and training to grow a business and build a future.

Lukka, the Field Director in India explains, “Women from the community leading successful enterprises has always been one of the driving forces of Profugo’s activities. We are in the final stages of actualizing this dream. Access to a better quality of life is a basic right, but more often just a dream for marginalized communities who live in remote villages with limited facilities. Economic empowerment of women is a catalyst for sustainable change. When community development efforts are focused on women, it yields positive outcomes.”

An initial training was organized for 94 selected women who showed interest in taking up enterprises. Many details were covered, such as; roles and responsibilities, financial commitments, products, processes, training requirements, technology required, potential challenges in the journey, etc. After three rounds of trainings, some women stepped back as they felt they will join the units as employees rather than taking a lead role in the enterprises. Only those who were most committed and focused made it through the three trainings. As of now, 36 women broken into ten groups have emerged.

Wayanad is a rich agricultural area, so all of the groups are based around food; including ginger, coconuts, avocado, jackfruit, and so on. The nutritional benefits of many of these products are being capitalized as is the organic way they are grown. While each group has an interesting business plan, a few are highlighted below.

The Evergreen Group, composed of 4 women, will focus on jackfruit. There are numerous health benefits of jackfruit. High in vitamin C, it boosts immunity. It aids in digestion and reduces inflammation. It’s good for your heart, skin, AND it may have cancer fighting properties. Who wouldn’t want to eat this wonderful fruit?!?!? Not only are there numerous nutritional benefits, but there are several different ways to prepare jackfruit. Ms. Sheeja, a Profugo community leader, and her team will begin with processed jackfruit items to sell. This endeavor could certainly grow to include more women from the community, as there is jackfruit in abundance in Wayanad.

Another group came to Profugo with the idea to focus on crops such as banana, tapioca, and passion fruit. Upon completion of the trainings they realized their skills were better suited for ground coffee in multiple flavors. They are now working on establishing a center for their coffee enterprise.

The trainings also helped Sini G and her team realize what they wanted to sell. They came to Profugo knowing they desired to be entrepreneurs, but with no idea what their product would be. Upon completion of the trainings, they settled on tapioca and banana products, an expert area for the group. WIth Profugo’s guidance, they will work on polishing up their product making skills, and improve the quality of the packaging.

The other seven groups have equally inspiring and exciting ventures in works. The effects of women entrepreneurship and income generation in marginalized communities are significant. For every $1 that a woman earns, she invests 80% back into her family, compared to 35% for men (UN Women). In developing countries, children of working mothers are 20% more likely to complete school, reducing intergenerational poverty (World Bank). There are numerous case studies that prove how beneficial an empowered woman with an income is, not only to her family, but her community and beyond. Profugo looks forward to supporting the progress of these 10 inspirational groups and hope you do too.