Mumbai, June 01, 2020: FICCI Ladies Organization (FLO) and Women on Wings have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate for sustainable livelihoods and economic empowerment of women in rural areas. The partnership will focus on identifying and supporting social enterprises working primarily with rural women in sectors such as agriculture, food processing, eco-tourism, textiles, handicrafts, waste management and non-timber forest products (NTFP) and related upstream activities and NTFP. The goal of this support is to increase livelihood opportunities and growth of women artisans engaged with the selected organizations.
The partnership between FICCI FLO and Women on Wings will also play a critical role amidst the social and economic unrest brought by Covid -19. In view of a big migrant population moving back to their small towns and villages, the partnership is an effort to address the unique challenge of creating more employment opportunities in rural India.
On signing the MoU Ms. Jahnabi Phookan, National President, FICCI FLO said “I am excited to take the vision of FICCI FLO forward by promoting entrepreneurship and professional excellence among women. Women on Wings wonderfully matches our mission in the current challenging times and I look forward to partner with them.”
Ronald van het Hof, Joint Managing Director at Women on Wings said: “FICCI FLO and Women on Wings share a common vision of promoting grassroots enterprises and helping the women workers therein become economically independent. I am really proud that we are now joining hands in our effort to empower one million women in rural India.”
Established in 1927, Federation of India’s Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) is the largest and oldest apex business organization in India. Its history is closely interwoven with India’s struggle for independence, its industrialization, and its emergence as one of the most rapidly growing global economies. FICCI Ladies Organization is a subsidiary of FICCI and as the name suggests, focusses on women entrepreneurs in specific. FLO’s role as the Women’s’ Chamber of Commerce, is to connect the dots between Women on Wings and the social entrepreneurs through its bandwidth of 17 FLO chapters Pan India. This is in sync with FLO’s mission to work towards sustainable livelihood for women’s economic empowerment. Through these 17 chapters, FLO represents 8,000 female entrepreneurs and professionals.
About Women on Wings
India: a large and rapidly expanding global economic power. The middle class is growing along with it. Yet, the underclass lives on just two dollars a day. There is very little paid work in rural India. Families lack income: there are high levels of poverty, malnutrition and illiteracy. Together with its business partners Women on Wings aims to create one million jobs for women in rural India. A job means an income, economic autonomy and an escape from the cycle of poverty. Research shows that women spend their income on their families. Children can go to school, which increases their chances of a better future.
About FICCI FLO
FLO is the women wing of the Federation of Indian Chamber of Commerce & Industry (FICCI). FLO was established in 1983, as a division of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) which is the apex body of industry and commerce in India. FLO has been promoting entrepreneurship and professional excellence among women through workshops, seminars, conferences, training and capacity building programmers etc. As an All India Organisation for women, FLO has 17 Chapters pan India – Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Coimbatore, Hyderabad, Indore, Jaipur, Kolkata, Lucknow, Kanpur, Ludhiana, Mumbai, Northeast, Pune, Amritsar, Northeast & Uttarakhand, with its Head Office in New Delhi. Its members comprise of entrepreneurs, professionals and Corporate Executives.
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