ISB & Samhita-CGF's Skill Development Program Empowers 500 Rural Women Entrepreneurs

By: WE Staff | Thursday, 9 January 2025

The Indian School of Business (ISB) Executive Education, in collaboration with Samhita-CGF, proudly announced the successful completion of its pilot Women's Entrepreneurship Development Programme for the 2023-2024 period. This three-month initiative aimed at empowering rural women entrepreneurs has trained 500 aspiring businesswomen across five states: Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh, Delhi, Gujarat, and Maharashtra. Building on the programme's success, the current cohort of 550 women is being trained across seven blocks in Uttarakhand.

Developed as a joint initiative, the bespoke programme includes online modules by ISB Executive Education, focusing on essential business fundamentals, along with mentorship modules by Samhita-CGF, delivered in a hybrid format. The programme addresses socio-economic challenges and empowers women to develop entrepreneurial skills, enabling them to balance household responsibilities with business activities effectively. The participants are engaged in business development training, financial literacy workshops, marketing strategies, and digital skills development. Additionally, they benefit from mentorship and networking opportunities, which are integral to the programme. The first cohort demonstrated significant success, with the majority of participants embarking on entrepreneurial ventures or securing livelihood opportunities. 

Sujatha Kumaraswamy, Executive Director, Executive Education and Digital Learning, ISB, remarked, "This partnership with Samhita-CGF marks a significant step towards empowering aspiring woman entrepreneurs in rural areas and providing them with the knowledge and insights needed to build and sustain successful businesses. We aim to promote and facilitate teaching excellence at ISB by offering mentoring, training, and resource support to create a social impact." 

Priya Naik, CEO and Founder of Samhita Social Venture Pvt Ltd highlighted the broader impact of the initiative, stating, "Increasing women's entrepreneurship is a national priority. With more women coming into the workforce and succeeding as entrepreneurs, we will see a material change in our GDP. We aim to double the incomes of 2 million women entrepreneurs over the next five years. We consider our partnership with ISB Executive Education as a movement where women entrepreneurs handhold each other towards shared success." 

Participants meeting the programme's requirements received joint certification from ISB Executive Education and Samhita-CGF, recognizing their dedication and achievement. The initiative also identified and further developed 'Champions' from the course, who serve as role models and change agents within their communities.