Network Empowers Rural Women

[Guest guest]

The South-Central Indian state of Andhra Pradesh is using high-speed

Internet access to educate and empower women in remote villages and

rural areas. Although the article below is written in regrettably

thick Indian-English high-finance jargon, it's an interesting

account that tells a bit more about this great program:

 

HYDERABAD, India (Aug. 1, 2003) - Empowering womenfolk through a

wired network for linkage activities, or connecting the rural with

urban world, is the new mantra adopted by many FMCGs [i.e. firms

selling "fast-moving consumer goods" - DB] to sell their products as

well as improve the lot of rural women. Indeed, a win-win

partnership for both womenfolk and the company.

 

This has been made possible due to the initiatives taken up by

Hindustan Lever Ltd for an exclusive project called i-Shakti through

which women in a remote village can access happenings around the

world. ... Besides tapping the rural market and creating awareness

for its basket of products, HLL's i-Shakti aims to spread IT

education among the rural masses. ...

 

At the outset, about four computers will be installed in Nalgonda in

the houses of Shakti dealers. The Net-connected computers will help

provide basic information on healthcare, tailormade programmes for

womenfolk.

 

Besides health education, there is also an option of 'e-learning' to

prepare home foods like pickles and curry powders among other

things. i-Shakti will also help women to know about crop protection,

weather forecasting, soil conditions, cropping patterns in different

weather besides integrated pest management practices.

 

The whole operation is primarily through SHGs who act as direct

dealers in the rural markets of HLL. ...

 

Net access will be provided with the software developed at HLL's in-

house R&D centre.

 

By B.V. Mahalakshmi in India's "Financial Express"

Source: http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?

content_id=39167