India, September 2, 2022: The Entrepreneurship Development Institute of India (EDII), a Centre of Excellence recognized by the Government of India, on Friday, outlined how, the Institute will join hands with noted corporates to create 10,000 women-led green businesses in 100 districts in 1000 days. The announcement was made following a roundtable meeting organised by EDII on ‘Technology-enabled women-led green businesses’ at the India International Centre (IIC), New Delhi.
The day-long session witnessed deliberations on the latest practices in women-led green enterprises, collaboration for collective action for increased women empowerment and the use of low-cost technologies to scale up green businesses. Notably, CSR heads from the corporate world, PSUs, senior officials from ministries and representatives from international organisations participated in the session.
EDII, a pioneer in the field of entrepreneurship education and skilling, works in collaboration with government ministries and departments and India Inc for the implementation of several developmental projects ensuring inclusive growth of communities. Social entrepreneurship and CSR have always remained key focus areas for the institute.
EDII’s Director General Dr Sunil Shukla said, “EDII has been successfully offering entrepreneurship and skill development training to artisans, weavers, women start-ups and the unemployed, leading to sustainable livelihood options for them. I am glad that with corporates endorsing the power of entrepreneurship, we will continue to progress with remarkable results.”
Dr Raman Gujral, Director, Department of Project (Corporates), EDII, emphasized on the growing requirement for high-end value-added products and services in the market with minimal environmental harm. “The need for sustainability in business applies to both big corporates and small enterprises. Keeping this in mind, we need to focus on what strategies can be developed for promoting green enterprises and businesses for economic growth and to save the environment. There is a need for newer innovations and eco-friendly practices both in rural and urban sectors,” he said.
In partnership with noted corporates, EDII, under Micro Skill Development Programme (MSDP), has developed several innovative green businesses like urban terrace gardening kits, bamboo crafts, mushroom cultivation, organic fertilizers, beekeeping, and biodegradable plates made from leaves to name a few.
Highlighting the correlation between rural entrepreneurship and technology, Dr. Sunil Shukla, DG – EDII, opined, “Rural entrepreneurship has the potential to power over 70% of the Indian economy by imparting the right set of skills to the right set of people. Technology is and always will be one of the core drivers for mitigating problems faced by a target community. To promote enterprises in this sector, rural community groups must be aware of the different low-cost technologies conducive to enterprise creation. It will improve their economic resilience and well-being.”
Interestingly, under the MSDP project, EDII has trained rural women in Karnataka for manufacturing solar-based electrical items. To help rural women entrepreneurs grow their businesses, EDII provided digital training to sell and connect with buyers on various online and social platforms.
In the past, EDII has joined hands with noted corporates including Accenture, Facebook, Bayer Foundation, HSBC Bank, Walmart, HAL, HP, ITC, Yes Bank, ONGC and Amazon. Through these collaborative efforts, EDII has so far impacted the lives of 68,134 people across 741 villages, 138 districts and 23 states of India through several projects.
