We firmly believe in our slogan - आपका हाथ हमारा साथ, and are working towards building the program grounds up. In other words, its a program for the people and by the people... we are only facilitating the process!
The vocations that we wish to cover in our training modules have been arrived at through active participation of the villagers and we believe that is very important for the success of the program.
As we got ready to start work in Valvanda village and its surrounding areas, it was very important for us to understand the aspirations of the local people so that we could add value to their lives and help them build a sustainable livelihood in the long run.
A massive survey was undertaken covering over 20 villages within 10 Kms radius from Valvanda village – we met over 250 people and the Sarpanch of most of the villages in this area over a period of 30 days.We had a three-pronged objective –
- Understand why people were migrating to the cities
- Reasons for high levels of unemployment
- What they would like to pursue for sustainable living in the long run
Indicated below is a summary of the survey… this is what the villagers had to say…
- Reasons for Unemployment
- Lack of quality education
- Lack of technical skills to pursue livelihood
- No facility for finance / loans
- No training facility or proper guidance
2. Gaps, if fulfilled, will encourage the villagers to stay back
- Water in village farm
- Availability of loans
- Market linkages to connect to customers for their handicrafts
- Proper skill training
- Opportunities for Entrepreneurship & Self employment
3. Vocations that appeal to the people
- Rural Vocations: Farming & farm Enterprises like poultry, goat rearing, honey cultivation, floriculture, etc and Handicrafts ( Warli Paintings, etc)
- Urban Vocations: Tailoring, Nursing, Mobile Repairing, Mobile Repairing, Cycle / 2-Wheeler repairing, Beautician, etc
When we started our journey, we had a list of over 40 vocations that could be taught to the women and youth in this area. Having spoken to them, we have now narrowed it down to 7 vocations which are most popular….and plan to focus our training modules around these vocations.
We now look forward to mobilizing people from the village and their active participation as we progress in our journey……
