Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National rural livelihood mission (DAY-NRLM)

Learn about the contributions made by the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM), India’s Social Security Reformist Self Employment Program, to the emancipation of rural women for improved livelihoods. It is offered under several headings according to its goals, and advantages and success stories are connected to it.

Table of Contents

Introduction

As an umbrella organization for rural women formed under Day/NRLM, SHGs act as a medium that empowers the women to upgrade their standards of living or in other words, enhance the overall economic development of the communities.

The Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) is a central Government of India’s poverty alleviation linkage programme implemented to promote self-employment and to federate the rural poor in to Self Help Groups (SHGs). Another focus of DAY-NRLM is to empower the women, since the women are commonly regarded as the pillar of the rural economy. Focusing on the targets and aims of DAY-NRLM and its placement, this article will deliberate on the livelihoods promotion for women’s.

Understanding Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National rural livelihood mission (DAY-NRLM)

DAY-NRLM is been formulated with an aim of eradicating poverty within farmers especially rural women through offering them tools and assistance in order to enhance their own level of income. The mission’s core objectives include:The mission’s core objectives include:
Organizing women into SHGs: SHGs form the basis of DAY-NRLM wherein the women can pool money, take credit, and also get involved inOptionPane group activities.
Providing financial inclusion: DAY-NRLM seeks to ensure the financial literary of the group by ensuring that SHGs access relevant banking facilities to embrace credit facilities amongst women.
Promoting livelihood activities: This mission empowers women to participate in income generating activities inclusive of farming, animal rearing, bead making, and other small businesses.
Empowering women: Thus, the established project DAY-NRLM would aim at strengthening women’s capacities to make correct decisions, improving their standard of living and enshrine gender equality.

Objectives of DAY-NRLM

Understanding Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National rural livelihood mission (DAY-NRLM) broader objectives are to:

Empower Women – empower women with the right skills and resources to become financially independent.
Self Employment – support women to engage in self employment to ensure fast growing entrepreneurship amongst rural women.
Skill Development – grow training and skill development programs and support employability in formal and informal settings.
Financial Inclusion – access to credit and financial services is key aspect of ensuring women have money to invest in a business.
Social Empowerment – create social awareness to enable women’s participation in community decision making processes.

Benefits of DAY-NRLM

It is evident that there have been many positive influences regarding the rural women in India as a result of DAY-NRLM model. The following are some of the major advantages of the program: The following are some of the key advantages of the program:

Increased income: Improvements of the general wellbeing of women can certainly be seen through an increase in levels of income facilitated through livelihood and financial service related activities.
Financial security: SHGs serve as source of credit back up for women as she builds a margin of credit to meet the exigent circumstances which may arise.
Social empowerment: It without doubt has brought social empowering change to women in the SHGs as most of them have gained self-confidence and leadership skills.
Community development: DAY-NRLM has had an important sense of community development through economic growth generated through income-generating activities, and social support built through the rural community atmosphere.

Strategies for Livelihood Promotion

DAY-NRLM has a variety of strategies to advance women’s livelihoods:

SHG:

micro-savings institution based on individual and collective savings, mutual supports and received credit. SHGs form one of the primary interventions among the four types of DAY-NRLM interventions. They refer to micro-financial cooperative institutions of women, who share their socio-economic conditions and pooled their money for saving, lent to each other for different business activities. Women in SHGs are empowered to learn from each other and empower through sharing stories, ideas and develop self-confidence to act independently.

Capacity Building and Skill Development

it is meant to prepare people, organisations and other actors to be able to operate effectively and sustainably in their work for development.

DAY-NRLM provides a number of training activities, focused particularly on skills development for the learners. The training programs can have different topics, some examples include:

Financial Literacy: Women empowerment in relation to the financial management and savings versus spending.
Entrepreneurship Development: Education, how to get started and how to run small scale business.
Vocational Skills: Areas that particularly cover competencies, for example dressing making, knitting and food preparation.

Access to Financial Services

In order to ensure that women get all they need in order to start their businesses, DAY- NRLM provides access to finance. This includes:

Microcredit: SHGs: delivery of small loans to female entrepreneurs.
Linkages with Banks: Linking of the SHGs with the banks for creating awareness on savings and investments.
Insurance Schemes: Introducing the insurance plans which would provide the women entrepreneurs against the risks which might occur in their occupation.

Market Linkages

To the women entrepreneurs, DAY-NRLM offers a way of linking the available markets for the sale of their products. This includes:
Promotion of Products: : Hosting fair and exhibitions that would promote sales of various products that are made by women.
Online Marketplaces: Helping females to market their products through the internet shops.
Branding and Packaging: Support in the area of branding and packaging with a view of making products more attractive to the market.

Day-NRLM Effects on Women’s Livelihood

The implementation of DAY-NRLM has had a significant impact on the livelihoods of women in rural areas:The various factors brought about by the implementation of DAY-NRLM has greatly influenced the economic lives of the women in rural areas.

Economic Empowerment

From the study, DAY-NRLM interventions’ outcome indicates that women who have benefited from the program have experienced an increase in their household income and financial standard. There are many woman who have shifted from the informal sector to formal self employment and therefore have better earnings.

Social Empowerment

The establishment of the SHGs has resulted in increased sociability of the women. They are more confident and participate more in determining the decision that is to be made within the community. There has also been a shift in empowering the women and has also depreciated gender discrimination in many aspects.

Skill Enhancement

Women, via the trainings, have undergoes certain trainings that has made them market ready hence improving their chances. Most of the women have changed from performing traditional activities to professional careers to help the family income.

Improved Access to Services

From previous discussion, it can be concluded that the network played a significant role in enhancing women’s financial services. Most of today’s young women are able to open personal accounts in the bank and carry out Transactions independently. This financial inclusion has opened up new opportunities for investment and growth.

Success Stories

Being in operation for a short period, DAY-NRLM has recorded several success stories of women who have benefited from the program. For instance in a village in Rajasthan some woman coalesced, developed a SHG and ventured into a mini enterprise producing crafts. The business has been good and has supported several women by giving them employment in the society.
For example, there is SHG woman in Bihar who used the loan amount towards the purchase of a cow and ventured into milk business. The business has been lucrative as she has been able to pay for her children’s tuition fees and change the standard of living of their family.

Challenges Faced

Despite the successes, there are several challenges that women face under DAY-NRLM:
Cultural Barriers: Some of the traditional cultural practices that favour male dominated culture are still prominently place in some of the regions, which renders women limited opportunities to engage in most of the economic activities.
Lack of Awareness: Most of the women do not know the programs and services that are offered to them and therefore do not participate in them.
Market Competition: The major problem that resonates with women entrepreneurs is the much competition they receive from other small businesses which hinders them to run their businesses.
Access to Technology: Lack of access to technology will also keep women from marketing and selling their products online.

What are the requirements by joining a DAY-NRLM SHG?

The criteria to be a member of this SHG is rational, any woman more than 18 years of age and living in a rural area in a poor or vulnerable household is membership to a DAY-NRLM SHG.

In the following sub-sections, details of its financial assistance to SHGs will be described ways through which the DAY-NRLM supports SHGs in their financial needs

Fund mobilisation, as discussed earlier is done through revolving funds, bank linkages and government grants for SHGs under DAY-NRLM.

What events are some of the common livelihood activities that have been promoted by DAY-NRLM?

In terms of basis livelihoods activities supported/ promoted by DAY-NRLM include ; farming production, animal production, hand made products, food processing industry and small business enterprises.

In my view, to what extent, the DAY-NRLM makes certain about the sustainability of the SHGs?

Regarding the issues of sustainability of the SHGs, DAY-NRLM facilitates the training and capacity building interventions to all SHGs. The program also assists the SHGs in formulating the business plans as well as advertising their products.

Conclusion

On its part, DAY-NRLM has now become a major instrument used to support the rural women in India. Because the program has enabled the females to save, borrow and engage in income-generating activities, poverty and low living standards have been declined together with improvement of gender equity. DAY-NRLM has the possibility to make the difference in the lives of millions of rural women across the country as the center grows and develops.