Walmart rolls out a programme to help MSMEs provide healthcare services to employees and families
Under Walmart's Vriddhi Cares, MSMEs can support their employees and their families using telecare and other health-related resources and services.
In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, American retail giant Walmart announced an initiative to support the micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) in India. Under its new initiative, Vriddhi Cares, MSMEs can support their employees and their families using telecare and other health-related resources and services.
They can avail several options like free telecare services, counselling sessions, remote access to doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers via mobile phones. Regularly interacting with the doctors will also enable the individuals to monitor symptoms better, get updated information on vaccines guidelines, home quarantine procedures, and more.
These services will be provided primarily in English, Hindi, Kannada and Tamil languages.
Commenting on the development, Nidhi Munjal, Vice President, International Partnership Services at Walmart, said, “India’s MSMEs are working hard to prioritise the wellbeing of those they care about while also navigating the unprecedented business impacts of COVID-19. Vriddhi Cares is designed to provide easy access to trusted healthcare and business advice so that MSMEs are equipped to help their families, workforce and communities get through this tough time.”
Vriddhi Cares has also been holding webinars at the onset of the pandemic related to topics and issues that plague this sector including workforce protection, pandemic protocols for factories, workforce health insurance schemes, access to financial support and digital marketing.
Walmart Vriddhi was started in December 2019 with an aim to help MSMEs of India build and develop the business skills required to succeed as suppliers to giants like Flipkart, Walmart itself, and many other large companies in India and abroad.
The programme provides a digitally enhanced learning experience through online modules with personalised feedback and one-on-one advisory sessions. It has already launched e-institutes in Panipat, Agra, Bengaluru, Surat, Tirupur and Kanpur.
The goal of this initiative is to empower 50,000 MSMEs in the next five years.
Edited by Anju Narayanan
