Tag: REVIVE Diaries

In the pursuit of comprehensive financial inclusion innovations, Samhita-CGF’s pioneering network alliance is steadfastly working towards addressing the credit gap experienced by underbanked communities and micro-entrepreneurs. To assess our progress in this initiative, we are excited to introduce a revolutionary method for measuring and improving credit impact outcomes for informal sector enterprises by introducing four key indices – the Income Index, Economic Empowerment Index, Women Economic Empowerment Index, and Resilience Index. These indices are intricately crafted to offer in-depth insights into the economic well-being and resilience of communities. Let’s explore the significance of these indices and understand their vital role in evaluating the impact of informal sector enterprises and the households they support.

The significance of indices

Indices are vital tools for tracking progress and measuring the change in various aspects of communities. For instance, the Reserve Bank of India’s Consumer Confidence Index reveals that consumer sentiment rebounded significantly in the last quarter, reaching an index value of 118.8, indicating a growing confidence in the economy. This data points to the importance of understanding the sentiments and perspectives of consumers for effective economic policies. An index is thus “a single, unique numerical value tracked over a given period as a time-series”. Some of the other common indices measured in India are MoSPI’s consumer price index (CPI), BSE Sensex, air quality index (AQI), RBI’s financial inclusion index, etc.

In 1990, the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) transformed the landscape of development theory, measurement, and policy with the publication of its first annual Human Development Report (HDR) and the introduction of the Human Development Index (HDI). The HDI, born from Amartya Sen’s revolutionary “capabilities approach,” emphasized the importance of human well-being beyond income. This pioneering index inspired the creation of other impactful measures, with the latest HDR published in 2022.

More recently in July 2023, NITI Aayog came out with the progress report on multidimensional poverty index, which derives its methodology from the Global Multidimensional Poverty Index (MPI) published by Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) and the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP). 

The choice of the indices by Samhita-CGF

In an increasingly interconnected world, the need for robust indices cannot be overstated. Traditional economic indicators often fall short in capturing the nuanced challenges faced by different segments of the population. The Income Index, Economic Empowerment Index, Women Economic Empowerment Index, and Resilience Index are tailored to bridge this gap. Below is a snapshot of the same.

According to a recent UNDP report, the global Gender Development Index (GDI) shows progress, but it also highlights the persistent gender disparities in education and income in various regions. This underscores the importance of specialized indices like the Women Economic Empowerment Index to address these specific challenges. Similarly, the Resilience Index aims to measure the ability of the proprietor’s household to withstand any exogenous or endogenous shock, given the sustainability offered by the growth of the enterprises through capital and other intervention support provided by Samhita-CGF.

Indices as a means to track our commitment to the vision for supporting the informal sector

Through the REVIVE Alliance, Samhita- CGF envisions to empower communities through data-driven insights and targeted interventions. Our recent impact assessment shows that through this alliance, we have catalysed the advancement of livelihoods for over 5,50,000 informal workers and entrepreneurs in just three years. This includes more than 4,40,000 women who have benefited from multiple interventions under the alliance, showcasing the potential for transformative change. We believe that by accurately measuring and understanding economic empowerment and resilience, we can implement interventions that have a lasting impact on the lives of individuals and families.

The resounding success of REVIVE looks at the next phase where we aim to irreversibly increase incomes and improve the livelihoods of 2 million participants over the next 3 years, and 10 million workers and MSMEs in 5 years (with at least 50% being women) through multi-year, multi-intervention support of participants. We aim to not only facilitate the graduation of small businesses into the formal economy, but also provide evidence to demonstrate the creditworthiness of these segments as a whole and create a new market for formal lending for banks, NBFCs, and other FIs. Our co-created pre credit score (PCS) will be used as a proxy for a formal credit rating and be required as a scheme prerequisite. (We elaborated more on PCS here.)

In a world where change is the only constant, it is imperative that we have the tools to adapt and grow. The Income Index, Economic Empowerment Index, Women Economic Empowerment Index, and Resilience Index are the embodiment of our commitment to creating a brighter, more prosperous future for all. (We deep dive into one of the indices, Women Economic Empowerment Index, here.) With these indices as the basis of measurement of impact on each beneficiary’s life, we can assess not only the number of beneficiaries but the degree to which the impact was created in the life of each individual. These indices would give a deeper insight into the impact REVIVE is creating and will aid the alliance to dive deeper into the challenges and opportunities to support and impact many more lives. 

 

This article was authored by Abhishek Gupta, Ipsita Gupta, and Varnika Jain

Artisan: Salma Ben Rajanpur, Gujarat

Supported by STFC’s sewing training

44-year-old Salma Ben comes from the Rajanpur area of Gujarat. “I am an all-rounder,” she says when asked about her skill set that makes her a growing artisan and micro-entrepreneur. “I have my sewing, tailoring business that runs out of my house. I do all kinds of work – cutting, designing new patterns, stitching, tailoring, etc.”

Salma Ben has been associated with STFC for the past three years and it all began with the advent of COVID-19. “Everything was shut. My husband lost his job. We had no income to make ends meet,” says Salma, who is a mother of three daughters and two sons. “All my children have passed class 10th except one son who is still studying. None of them are working and so I was the only provider at that critical time,” she adds.
This kind of crisis was met by Salma after she was determined to find new work. “I was asking everyone if there was a way to find more work. And this is when through a relative, I was introduced to STFC. They instantly became my pillar of support as they pulled me into their tailoring training and the first thing I ever made for them were thousands of masks,” remembers Salma.

At that point when many households were struggling with basic income, STFC began running its training programs and onboarded women who could make masks, cloth bags, basket bags, etc. This training usually consists of about 25 women in each batch and continues for about 3 months totaling nearly 45 hours. “I feel so fortunate that STFC provided me with free training when it was most needed. Earlier, I was doing tailoring work but that didn’t amount to much income majorly because I was dependent on local orders, which would only come at festivals or weddings. Also, the sewing machine was an old one and it was only during the training that I was introduced to a better machine that helped me do all tasks without depending on others. I also learned very critical skills such as cutting, and pattern drawing/designing – which earlier, I had to get done from someone else thereby losing further money,” explains Salma.

 

The training was crucial in not only their support but also in providing raw materials and equipment at zero cost. “I had earlier taken private classes but since I had to purchase my raw material, I could not continue those classes for long. It became a super expensive affair,” she says. Adding to this, Salma ben was introduced to a pool of determined women just like hers who took charge of their households at such a crucial time. “I was in such awe to see so many neighboring women just like I come out of their houses and learn a skill and become an entrepreneur. My husband still makes very little income- about INR 3000/month and with the support of STFC, catering their orders alone amounts to INR 8000/month. Right now, without my support, we can’t run our family. And without STFC’s support, I couldn’t have reached here”.

Salma ben has not only been influenced by so many other women like her but has also inspired many other women who have joined the training courses and are determined to work towards raising their income levels. “During COVID, I used to work for 10-12 hours straight. But then I fell sick and could not sit for so long. I have trained my daughters and now they help me in finishing orders.”

While Salma ben has still not named her business, she is determined to reach an income of INR10,000-12,000/month by taking more orders through STFC.

 

 

 

“During these tough times  I was struggling, distressed and did not have any stable source of income. This is when the Returnable Grant came to my rescue.”

Fatima encountered many Pandemic induced ups and downs before she could conquer a state of being independent and having a reasonable growth in her business. She is a beauty entrepreneur based in Sangam Vihar of Delhi.

“People were scared to come to the parlour and instead started calling parlour services at home. And even when people started going out they were more comfortable taking parlour services at my home rather than visiting my parlour. And few who were coming to the parlour were getting their towels or band for their safety and hygiene,” says Fatima on the impact of COVID-19 on her business.  

Before the pandemic, she was also  conducting beauty training sessions and provided a 6-month training session with 2 hours of class every day and charge a fee of Rs 500 for each trainee. Everything was going on smoothly in her life until COVID-19 engulfed her in unexpected turmoil and havoc. She had to close her training centre because trainees stopped showing up for the sessions. As a result, a source of stable income began crippling. “Even if 4-5 children would take my session I could pay off my rent,” says Fatima. 

With reduced customers, the income started dangling and soon Fatima didn’t have enough to run her business. This is when she got in touch with Dhriiti, a social enterprise based in Delhi. It was here that she was provided a Returnable grant in the form of zero-interest loan with the intention of helping her to restart her lost business. 

Fatima used the money and training efficiently. She took advantage of this opportunity and started brushing up on her beautician skills through the training sessions conducted by Dhriiti. The returnable grant helped her reshape her business and also assisted her to venture into the business of cosmetics. “The process of procuring returnable grant was easy and comfortable as we had no such condition of providing a guarantor, no compulsion of visiting the bank, no fixed amount to pay back and zero-interest. There were no compulsions or boundations. This was of the best facility provided through returnable grant,” she adds.  

With the support that she received from Dhriiti, Fatima was able to take the first leap toward income stabalisation post pandemic. She opened a parlour near her home.  “My mentors at Dhriiti suggested that I open a beauty training centre as I was good at providing training and I had previously trained many young students,” recalls Fatima. “It’s a big parlour compared to my previous one, which was quite small. The previous one had no cosmetic business and could accommodate only one chair with a small counter,” she adds.

The bigger facility not only provided her with enough space to run her parlour but also supported her with apt space to conduct her training sessions. “My spacious parlour has definitely helped me increase my business”, Fatima happily remarks.  

Even though Fatima received a small returnable grant amount, she says it was sufficient enough for her to kickstart her life and business. It gave her the confidence and strength to stand on her feet and took her on the road of being financially independent. Since she had repaid the entire amount, her credit score has helped her enter the formal system of banking, and increased her awareness of banking and loan schemes. Fatima desires to train as many young students as she can and take her parlour to great heights.
“The money that we received helped us in some way or another. The strength that ignited in us gave us the hope that we will be able to help and grow our business,” adds Fatima.

This story was editorialised by Avantika Seth

“It’s almost like this rickshaw is currently our caretaker. It’s the sole reason we’re able to survive.”

When the pandemic hit, Usha ben was making sense of the losses she had incurred by setting up a roadside chow mien stall. With the lockdown in place, she had to stall her business. Her only resort was to make her rickshaw run. But with everything going downhill, the rickshaw, too, couldn’t support her much. In the middle of the lockdown, its battery drained. As there was no money even to get basic food on the table, repairing the vehicle was out of the question.

“It was one of the most painful times of my life,” recalls Usha ben. However, a ray of hope showed up when she got in touch with SEWA Bharat and understood that the returnable grant of INR 20,000 could help her get the rickshaw’s battery repaired to enter the market once again. She first came to the SEWA Bharat centre to get her younger daughter’s ‘janampatri’ made, and that’s how she continued to remain in touch with the centre. After three-four years, she applied for an account in the bank with the help of SEWA and that’s when their journey began.

Since 1999, the SEWA Delhi microfinance program has enabled women to be financially included and independent. The aim is to ensure that members have access to savings and loans, particularly for working capital, and are prevented from exploitation by moneylenders.

“I was very disappointed as my work had stopped. I was facing severe issues, my income dropped and our ration was finishing. I approached Dolly didi from SEWA Bharat and she guided me through the process of procuring an interest-free loan. It helped me get the rickshaw battery changed and I was back on the road,” adds Usha ben.

Usha used to make electrical seals at her home before working as an e-rickshaw driver. For 1000 pieces she would get Rs 50 and in a day she could only make 220-250 seals in spite of working for more than 12 hours. Therefore, her elder brother suggested that she should drive an e-rickshaw. Usha has fond memories attached to the vehicle. Her elder brother not only went along with her for the purchase but also taught her how to drive.

“At the beginning, I was quite scared of how to drive the rickshaw and was so nervous thinking what if I hit someone or something.  My brother sat beside me and taught me how to drive.  I am very happy every time when the people of the centre are my passengers,” she tells.

Today, she earns anywhere between INR 700-800 per day and can provide for the education of her two young girls. “I take care of this rickshaw more than anything else in my life right now. I make sure it is always in good shape, I make sure I don’t park it randomly and so the chances of theft reduce, basically I make sure it is up and working -because this is the whole and sole of our lives right now,” she further adds.

In the Returnable grant program by Samhita, 202 women micro-entrepreneurs were aimed to be supported in Delhi. They are from Jahagirpuri, Sundarnagri, Gokulpuri, New Ashok Nagar and Raghubir Nagar areas of Delhi and are associated with SEWA Delhi Trust and Delhi credit cooperative. These women are from the backward communities and informal sector who have lost their livelihood during COVID-19. Mostly women micro-entrepreneurs involved in some trades i.e Home Based worker, Vendor, Domestic Worker, Self Employed. Like Usha ben, most of them have set up their small business such as selling garments, jewellery or tie&dye dupattas. The Grant has helped them scale their reach and led to a consistent source of income.

Usha ben received the Returnable Grant in the first cycle, September 2021. With the help of her rickshaw business, she will complete the repayment of the loan (INR 6000) by July 2022.

“After all being your own boss is the best, isn’t it? I can drive this rickshaw as much on as many days as I feel. When I’m sick, I can just let it park. No one’s going to ask me questions on that, no? It’s a great feeling,” she concludes.

This story was editorialised by Avantika Seth