The MM Hills Bamboo Producer Enterprise in Poonachi is the first step towards this plan of setting up women-owned collectives in the Bamboo value chain, empowering the Soliga Community of Karnataka to support their socio-economic development
National, February 4, 2021: Industree Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to developing sustainable livelihoods for women artisans, and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) inaugurated the Bamboo Producer Unit in Poonachi, Male Mahadeshwara Hills, Karnataka, on February 2, 2021, in partnership with the Karnataka Chapter of the National Bamboo Mission and Soliga Abhivruddhi Sangha.
This Bamboo Production Unit is the next step toward setting up women-owned collectives in the bamboo value chain under Industree Foundation’s “Producer-Owned Women Enterprises” (POWER) Project, supported by USAID under the W-GDP program. Present during the inauguration were Shri. Rajkumar Srivastava, IFS, APCCF, and State Mission Director, Karnataka Chapter, National Bamboo Mission,Shri. Manoj Kumar, IFC, CCF, Chamarajanagar Circle – Karnataka Forest Department, Shri. Yedukondalu, IFS, DCF, Karnataka State Forest Department, Ms. Neelam Chibber, Co-Founder and Managing Trustee, Industree Foundation, Smt. Nallamma, Chairman, Gram Panchayat, Poonachi, and Mr. Jacob Mathew, CEO, Industree and Smt. Munnimadhamma Vice President Soliga Abhivruddi Sangha.
Highlighting the need to invest in empowering indigenous women artisans, Ramona El Hamzaoui, Acting Mission Director, USAID/India, said:
Inaugurating the Resource Centre, Shri. Rajkumar Srivastava, IFS, APCCF, and State Mission Director, Karnataka Chapter, National Bamboo Mission said: “It is great to see that Industree and USAID are striving towards women empowerment as a whole. Government shall look into sustained supply of required raw materials for women artisans skilled at this centre. Department is promoting bamboo plantations outside forest areas and on farmer’s fields. These plantations shall ensure sustained supply of bamboo in future.”
Ms. Neelam Chibber, Co-Founder and Managing Trustee, Industree Foundation, added: “Just when we are coming to normalcy of life from the pandemic, this bamboo unit inaugural adds to the positivity that we need right now. The unit will be the first of the three bamboo production units that Industree is planning to set up this year, with the support of USAID under the POWER project. MM Hills production unit will create a platform for the very skilled bamboo Soliga community to reach global buyers and the growing conscious consumer. Such units will help uplift rural women from poverty while safeguarding green print in the world.”
The Soliga tribe of Karnataka has been an integral part of the bamboo value chain for generations; their skills and techniques an intrinsic part of their community culture. Over the years, however, they have been unable to reap economic or social benefits commensurate with their cultural contribution and the value of their skill. Through community intervention in the bamboo value chain, the enterprise looks to celebrate, promote and enable communities such as the Soliga, by showcasing their craft in the right light. This initiative will improve the artisans’ ability to evolve their practice, while empowering them economically and socially through profitable market opportunities.Smt. Munnimadhamma Vice President Soliga Abhivruddi Sangha, said, “After attending the one-week training and looking at the products, I feel positive that we will have a future working at this unit. I know that there are other women here like me who are interested to join and start earning wages and supporting our family.”
The POWER project over three years will create 28 women-owned enterprises that will connect 6,800 women producers to commercial supply chains in natural and biodegradable products based on banana fibre, bamboo and non-timber forest products. Overall, the project will indirectly impact 54,560 individuals across craft communities.
Among those who also present at the Inaugural were Smt. Manjula K, Tribal Welfare officer, Kollegal Taluka, and a few Panchayat leaders of Poonachi.
###
About Industree Foundation
Industree Foundation is an inspirational social enterprise that has been working with underserved women producers and indigenous tribes for the last 24 years. Industree works with a women-centered approach in communities to equip them with the necessary skills and tools to set up collectively owned enterprises close to their homes and yet a part of mainstream value chains. Industree works extensively in apparel and lifestyle value chains with great potential to herald in supply chains of the future that have positive social and environmental footprints. Industree is currently supported by both funders and investors that include USAID, HSBC, Target Foundation, UNDP, British Asian Trust, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, and International Trade Center, Geneva. You can read more about its work on www.industree.org.in.
About USAID
USAID is the world’s premier international development agency and a catalytic actor driving development results. USAID’s work advances U.S. national security and economic prosperity, demonstrates American generosity, and promotes a path to recipient self-reliance and resilience. Women’s economic empowerment is the core of USAID’s development agenda.
About The W-GDP Initiative
In February 2019, the White House established the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative, the first whole-of-government approach to women’s economic empowerment. W-GDP seeks to reach 50 million women in the developing world by 2025 by focusing on three pillars – Women Prospering in the Workforce, Women Succeeding as Entrepreneurs and Women Enabled in the Economy. W-GDP leverages a new innovative fund, scaling private-public partnerships which address the three pillars. In its first year alone, W-GDP programs reached 12 million women across the globe.
About POWER Project
Industree’s “Producer Owned Women Enterprises” (POWER) project is designed to empower marginalized women in the Indian forestry landscape to build women-owned enterprises and connect them to national and international supply chains for natural and biodegradable fibre products. The program is funded by USAID under the Women’s Global Development and Prosperity (W-GDP) Initiative. Producers in the proposed units receive tailored professional assistance to grow the skills and networks needed as employees and entrepreneurs.