Livelihood Upgradation and Women Development

Concept bought the metamorphosis in the life of marginalised women by making them independent from all aspects like social, economical and psychological. With the making of around 70 Self Help Groups and 2500 women who got a chance to be the part of CONCEPT have undergone the drills of skill training and orienting to sustainable system of life. Impart knowledge to the adolescent girls on education, marriage, laws, rights of women and family planning. Self Awareness march & meetings are held on "International Women's Day", every year.

Formation of SHGs for facilitating members self sustenance, promotion of open membership, equal partnership, participatory decision, entrepreneurial skill building among the socio-economic backward classes of women have been the thrust of CONCEPT Sanasthan. Though SHGs are informal association of women with maximum 20 in number; they learn collectively the micro level business of saving and credit through regular meetings and business transaction. They learn to mobilize the investment through setting common objectives and goals through evolving, rules regulations and duties for savings, lending, group meetings, and interest on loans, penalties on defaulting the group activities.

CONCEPT has enhanced the capacity of the SHG members through organizing trainings where self governance, gender issues, poverty alleviation, participatory decision making process etc have been the thrust area. The trainings have focused on self and social development. The trainings also helped the members to see a new avenue of bank linkages and its benefits with a view to be liberated from clutches of Money lenders. During the project period in the last financial year the number of SHGs formed has risen to 48. 54

With a view to do away with the exploitation done by the money lenders, the SHGs have started Self Banking.
This system would facilitate financial needs of its members in the form of lending loans on agreeable rate of interest.

Livelihood security is one of the most crucial factors that lead to the improvement in the quality of life of people.
CONCEPT has been striving to improve the standard of women by providing them livelihood up gradation training. It includes a wide area of choices depending upon the likings of the beneficiaries from stationary making, leather bags and handicrafts making to agricultural development etc.

Entrepreneurship Development programmes have become very important component of women development. The paucity of employment opportunities in the government as well as private sector has brought us into an era where creation of entrepreneurs is the only strategy to tackle the issue of unemployment. After the formation of the SHGs the women enter into credit and thrift activities.

CONCEPT has laid thrust that the women involved in labour work are able to set up a small scale business to generate sustainable income for herself and her family.