Gramalaya Microfin Foundation: Women Lending to Women to Eradicate Poverty
Giving money to women in rural areas can trigger the slow ripple effect that will start the process and progress towards bringing villages out of poverty. According to the World Bank, “In India, men are more likely to spend a big portion of their income for personal use such as smoking, drinking and gambling while women devote all of their income to family needs such as food, medical treatment, school fees and children’s clothing.” [i]
In 2011, Gramalaya Microfin Foundation (GMF) a non-profit based in Tamil Nadu realized they needed to do their part in regards to empowering women and took a unique spin on their business that is different from many of the other conventional Microfinance Institutions. GMF is one of the organizations that Milaap.org raises funds for, through its website www.milaap.org in support of women entrepreneurship and this is their story.
GMF requires all of their women to participate and complete their comprehensive training and capacity building program at the GMF Gramalaya Entrepreneurs Associates, Tamil Nadu (GREAT) Training Centre. This training program was originally funded by Milaap and takes the women through a business counseling process providing skills training, technical support, and other market linked promotional activities. Only after the completion of this course will the loans for income generation be provided to the women. The women can be trained in a variety of business trades including organic farming, agriculture, banana or millet products, fabric painting and several more depending on their interests. Upon completion the women are put in self-help groups to start their business or expand an existing small business.
In a recent interview, Geetha Jegan, CEO of GMF, told us about her dream to promote women entrepreneurs and enable them to provide income for their families. “Women many times don’t know how to approach or reach out to banks due to fear or lacking self confidence. Women have to rely on money from their husband or son and thus don’t have any savings. So if the woman has any sort of problem and is in need of money, she has to get support from others. At GMF we help build the women’s confidence by training them to generate their own income. Women possess a lot of capacity, but we don’t fully utilize it. If we create and support women empowerment I believe this can be the key to the development of our country. By supporting the women, the entire family will benefit and we build their confidence to tackle gender discrimination.”GMF makes initial loans of 10,000 to 12,000 Rupees to their borrowers, and the repayment period is spread out over 12 to 18 months. This initial funding is raised through banks, financial institutions or private donations/grants. As of January 2013, GMF has reached 2,258 borrowers, and has disbursed 22.58 million in loans.
39 year-old Revathi Muthusamy is one of GMF’s borrowers and funds were raised for her on Milaap.org. Revathi lives in the Kattuputhur village and began her professional career as a tailor and only worked to kill time. She wasn’t earning very much, and wanted a steady form of income. “I found out about GMF and their skill and business training and wanted to start something on my own,” says Revathi. “I am now part of a 5 member self-help women’s group, and after the GMF GREAT Training program I was trained in making millet and banana products.”Elaborating on her motivation for wanting to work and start her own business, Revathi says, “The sense of achievement that I feel motivates me. I want to be successful, and find satisfaction that I am doing something with my life and I want to see this business grow bigger. All 5 of us have the support of our husbands, and they encourage us all to do something.
We asked Revathi what would be one piece of advice she would give to women who want to become entrepreneurs and very adamantly she says, “One thing is it’s not enough to want to do something. You need to have self-confidence to get out there and do something. I think family support is crucial because usually your mother in law or husband will say that the woman needs to stay in the house instead of working outside. Instead, they should push, support, and motivate her to do more. A lot of housewives don’t have an education and let that stop them from doing anything. I want to tell other women that you don’t need an education, and you can have these amazing opportunities to do something beyond being a housewife.”
To celebrate Women’s Day, YourStory has joined with Milaap in a campaign for “Women Helping Women.” This is the last article in a three part series focusing on inspiring women entrepreneurs funded by Milaap. If you know of any ambitious women entrepreneurs who inspire you, tweet about them to #women4change marking @YourStorydotin and @Milaapdotorg. Women identified through this Twitter campaign have the chance to receive a $25 gift card to Milaap.org, in order to pay it forward, and help a fellow woman entrepreneur in need of support.
