Rural and Urban Slum Livelihood Enhancement Project

CARES’ CORE AREAS & VALUES: Environment and NRM, RD & LI Enhancement, Education and Indispensable changes and Human Values

As part of our rural skill development and establishment of cottage/micro enterprises development initiatives for livelihood, income generation and thus to socio-economic-participatory development, CARES is implementing a project that conducts skill development trainings on Banana Fiber Extraction, Crafts and Products manufacturing for the selected rural and urban slum women and girls in Amarthaluru and Repalle Mandal and Tenali RD, Guntur district. The project is also planning to establish an enterprise on the same envisioning at enhancing a promising source of income to each beneficiary woman/girl.

Banana Fiber and Fiber based Enterprise

Since 2016-17 onwards apart from the traditional and outdated skill – development and income generation options, we designed a concept that is highly demand-driven, potential for income generation, based on rurally available raw materials, cost-effective to establish, potential for easy marketing and more over fully 100% eco-friendly. Thus locally available banana materials have been selected. And thus from the Month of March 2017 onwards we started to impart trainings on banana fiber extraction, crafts making waste based on the banana fiber. Initially there are 150 selected for training programme and they are counting their training course which is for a total 3 Months duration at our Skill Development Training Center.

Innovation of the Project

This Reporting Year with the financial assistance of IMF, As part of our rural skill development and establishment of cottage/micro enterprises development initiatives for livelihood, income generation and thus to socio-economic-participatory development, CARES is now conducts skill development trainings on Banana Fiber Extraction, Crafts and Products manufacturing for the selected SHG women and girls in Amarthaluru and Repalli Mandals of Guntur district. The project is also planning to establish an enterprise on the same envisioning at enhancing a promising source of income to each beneficiary woman/girl.

The project is being supported by IMF and the Local CSR Initiatives and the CARES, it also proposes to borrow a loan and to establish the enterprise at commercially large level with revolving fund too for the initial 150 women and girls under a Cooperative Society.
The project is being carried out over the Amarthauru and Repalle Mandals of Guntur district in Andhra Pradesh South India. The project also extends only skill development training on Banana Fiber extraction and crafts making to the poorest of poor women and girls of Tenali urban slum too. It plans to replicate and scale-up to other areas of the States of Telangana and Odisha where CARES has works and field offices too.
They should be from the target villages
  • Household from Below Poverty Line.
  • Schedule Caste and Other Backward Castes
  • Disabled women and widows
  • Women from poor background who do not have any other alternative livelihoods
  • Women who are physically, domestically and sexually harassed and those with HIV/AIDS
  • The above mentioned all categories of women and girls will cross examined by their performance in the existing Group Activities (SHG), track records and character too.
  • Towards the official group level, marketing level, administrative level and all, there will be few educated women too will be considered.
Number of Beneficiaries:
Direct Project Beneficiaries : 150 women and girls
Indirect beneficiaries : 750
  • Women and girls’ socio-economic-participatory development and empowerment
  • Rural poor women’s income generation and social status equality through participation and Women’s networks for socio-political-livelihood and specifically economic development for oneness and equality (Women come together in participation irrespective of caste, religion and colour)
  • Sustainable women-led enterprise for women’s development exploiting best current potential and high-demanding markets and business as of men towards women’s financial sustainability.

INNOVATION

CARES’ always is keen on to promote 100% eco-friendly and 0% harm to environment, soil, human beings when it select a trade or skill or concept for rural income generation and enterprise. The ongoing skill development training, crafts production and enterprise establishment and all is of 100% eco-friendly only. And it also cleans the surroundings that may be heaped-up with banana wastes.
Each and every beneficiary undergo training and crafts production and all others who see the programme even one time also are full of praise and many of the women and girls still make civic demand and request for training needs and the way of Cooperative Society Development etc.
Since the civic demand, new areas’ women & girls’ requests and the successful levels for livelihood and income generation with the best demand and marketing opportunities, CARES has big plans with core-competency and desire to scale up it to other needy areas.