ITANAGAR, Sep 4: A one-day programme on ‘Empowering Women through Entrepreneurship, enterprise Development and Market Linkages in Tirap District, Khonsa, Arunachal Pradesh’, held in collaboration with Arunachal State Rural Livelihoods Mission (ArSRLM), was organized by DBT-APSCS&T Centre of Excellence for Bioresources and Sustainable Development, Kimin (GoAP) on Friday.
The programme is sponsored by the Science for Equality Empowerment and Development (SEED) division, DST, GOI funded project “Capacity Building of Rural Women on processing and value addition of Millet/underutilized crops through technology adoption and awareness for nutritional security in Dadam village of Tirap district, Arunachal Pradesh”.
Speaking at the event, Chasom Hakhun, ZPM Dadam block, highlighted the importance of women’s empowerment through self-reliance, confidence and economic independence. The chief guest encouraged women to take initiative, develop their skills, establish enterprises, and create sustainable livelihood opportunities for themselves and their families.
Anya Yowa, Assistant Commissioner Khonsa, emphasized that women’s empowerment goes beyond education, highlighting the importance of achieving financial independence and becoming economically self-reliant while contributing to their families and society.
Kaushik Khanikar, Consultant APIIP, serving as a technical expert, emphasized the importance of effective marketing and encouraged women entrepreneurs to highlight the story, effort and uniqueness behind their products. He also encouraged the SHGs to collaborate with APIIP to facilitate the establishment and development of their own enterprises.
Chalang Hakhun, the resource person, shared her entrepreneurial journey of starting a pickle business from her own kitchen with limited resources. Despite the challenges, she was selected for subsidy support from APIIP that helped her expand and grow her business.
The successful implementation of the project and the smooth conduct of the programme were made possible through the administration support and overall guidance of C D Mungyak, Director-cum-Member Secretary, Arunachal Pradesh State Council for Science & Technology, and Dr Debajit Mahanta, Jt Director APSCS&T, and Project Director DBT- APSCS&T CoE for BRSD.
The programme was organized under the guidance of Dr Joram Aku, Scientist-B, whose efforts and leadership contributed significantly to the successful conduct of the programme.
The programme also received valuable support and collaboration from ArSRLM whose continued engagement with SHGs plays an important role in strengthening women-led enterprises and promoting sustainable livelihood opportunities.