Focus: Government Policies and Interventions
Why in News?
Recently, the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) entered into a collaborative partnership.
Key Highlights of the Partnership:
Support for Women Entrepreneurs:
- The partnership aims to provide support for women looking to start or expand their own enterprises in sectors such as the care economy, digital economy, electric mobility, waste management, and food packaging.
Enhancing Poverty Alleviation and Livelihood Promotion:
- It seeks to enhance the implementation of national-level schemes for urban poverty alleviation and livelihood promotion by providing capacity building support to DAY-NULM.
Piloting Innovative Solutions:
- The partnership will pilot innovative solutions, particularly in the care economy domain, to address the challenges and opportunities faced by women entrepreneurs.
Project Scope:
- The project will initially cover eight cities and span three years, with the possibility of extension beyond 2025.
- Capacity Building Support:
- UNDP will offer national-level capacity building support to DAY-NULM, focusing on knowledge generation and management, including compiling best practices related to urban poverty.
On-Ground Mobilization:
- UNDP and DAY-NULM will jointly engage in on-ground mobilization activities, identifying urban poverty pockets and potential entrepreneurs, and facilitating access to business development services.
Community Business Mentors:
- UNDP will develop community business mentors called Biz-Sakhis in selected project locations, who can support new and existing enterprises and serve as a resource for DAY-NULM.
Impact of Women Entrepreneurship:
- Women entrepreneurship is a proven strategy for poverty alleviation, financial independence, and reshaping gender norms.
- Increasing the number of women entrepreneurs not only empowers women but also accelerates economic growth and ensures a happy and healthy society.
Leveraging Expertise and Mandate:
- The partnership leverages UNDP’s experience in linking over 200,000 women with better employment opportunities and DAY-NULM’s mandate of uplifting urban communities through sustainable livelihood opportunities.
About Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM)
Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Urban Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NULM) is a program launched in 2014 by the Ministry of Housing & Urban Affairs in India. Here are the key features of the mission:
Implementation:
- It is a Centrally Sponsored Scheme, meaning that both the central government and state governments contribute to its funding.
- The funding ratio between the Centre and the States is 75:25, except for the North Eastern and Special Category states, where the ratio is 90:10.
Mobilization and Self-Help Groups:
- DAY-NULM has successfully mobilized more than 8.4 million urban poor women across India.
- It has formed over 831,000 Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in over 4,000 towns as of 2023.
Objectives and Focus:
- The mission focuses on skill development and entrepreneurship among the urban poor, particularly women.
- It aims to enhance their capacity to access financial services and create sustainable livelihoods.
- The mission aims to uplift the urban poor by providing them with sustainable livelihood opportunities through skill development and access to credit.
Components:
- The mission includes various components such as skill training, self-employment, social mobilization and institution development, and street vendor rehabilitation.
