With millions of small businesses contributing to the Indian economy, it is seen that many women entrepreneurs are making the most effective use of digitalization. Among them, is one Swetha YM, who is from Pavagada in Karnataka. Since her husband was only a farmer, and that was not enough to support the family, Swetha started seeding designing and stitching saris and blouses for a living. After she met an old friend who had learnt embroidery from their mother and their tractors, Swetha started small, having launched Srideep Fashions, a cover-up business that drew the interest of the town’s people.
However, in terms of how far she could go because of the translation of services available in her small community, Swetha signed up for the training course Digital Saksham, which helps small business owners with the skills of operating in a digital economy, thereby further increasing the business’s reach. As a result of this program, Swetha had learned how to make constructive use of social media such as Facebook and Instagram in growing her business. At the moment, she runs a flourishing online retail shop that provides employment to four women and sells products to customers from nearby states raking in an income of about $300 a month.
Digital Saksham which is aimed at training women to start and run small-scale businesses was developed in response to the nationwide lockdown. This project combines the efforts of CII and Mastercard Strive and it focuses on varying skills from creating websites, and social media marketing to training business owners on digital payments. The program has been running since 2021, and more than 70000 entrepreneurs in 13 states of India have been reached, with close to 50% of the trainees being women.
The importance of digital components which comprise things such as mobile payment systems and online marketing cannot be overlooked by these entrepreneurs. They enable the small enterprises to expand their customer base, receive payments, and even have a – online shops. Such tools also make it easier for women to manage their finances which is quite a significant improvement considering that it is a male dominated society where men are the ones who run the finances of the entire household.
In future, Digital Saksham hopes to grow more by also availing additional training for the use of AI-based tools for marketing as well as security systems. Thanks to the program, more and more women like Swetha are not only growing their enterprises but also helping the nation achieve its ambitions of becoming the fastest growing economy in the world, that is to say the third largest after the USA and China.
Eager to praise the program, Swetha expresses her wish that all women should participate in it. “I have already spoken to some other women about how Digital Saksham has supported me,” she says, “and that I hope it will support them as well.”
