Vasavya Mahila Mandali - Impacting lives of Women in Need

 

Introduction

Since 2017, Vasavya Mahila Mandali has been providing livelihood benefits to over five hundred women. These benefits included cash loans, equipment purchases, and a variety of skills-trainings, including fashion design, computer skills, and more. In addition to these benefits, VMM provided counseling and additional support during the pandemic to assist these women. They had re-trainings for women who had learned to sew to learn new patterns for face masks and other PPE, and allowed all loan recipients to hold off on paying them back until after the pandemic subsided. We gave a survey to all the women who received benefits from VMM, and evaluated of the three interventions (cash loans, equipment purchases, and skills-training), which were most effective in improving quality of life, empowerment, and their economic status. Over 70% of the 525 women who received support replied to the survey, and we thank them for their participation and willingness to further the efforts of VMM’s community support interventions. In addition to the quantitative and qualitative responses from the survey, data from VMM’s blog and social media, as well as organizational documents, were used to gather information.

Economic Impact

 

 

In order to evaluate the economic impact of VMM’s support, all the participants were asked about their employment and income statuses. All the women were asked about their income status before and after the interventions, with different bracket options ranging from less than INR 2,000 a month to INR 10,001 a month or more. Prior to VMM’s interventions, 59% of participants were earning less than INR 2,000 a month—afterwards, this number fell to less than 20%. In addition, over 66% of those who reported an income in the lowest bracket saw their incomes increase to a higher bracket. In terms of impact on income, cash loans and equipment purchases were less effective than skills-training, with less than 50% reporting positive changes in income, compared to over 67% of those who received skills-training. This difference between cash loans and equipment purchases to skills-training was also seen in terms of employment status. Most of those who received cash loans or equipment purchases were self-employed prior to receiving support from VMM (90% and 72% respectively). Overall, there was a 50% decrease in the unemployment rate among participants, but again, this was mostly seen as a dramatic difference in the skills-training group, who were less likely to be employed prior to the interventions. For those who received cash loans or equipment purchases, these rates stayed constant. When looking at impact on quality of life, this may explain some of the more significant positive changes experienced by those who received skills-training, as their economic status was more likely to dramatically shift as a result of receiving support from VMM.

Quality of Life Impact

 

While the economic changes were significant, the impact on quality of life were even more encouraging. Of the women who received support, 63% stated their quality of life had improved as a result of these interventions, specifying increased self-confidence, financial stability, and independence among the factors that had most substantially changed in their lives. 100% of women who received skills-training reported positive changes in their self-confidence and their social standing, while these rates were far lower for those who received cash loans or equipment purchases. In their survey responses, many of those who received skills training articulated their personal growth, versus those who received cash loans and equipment purchases, whose responses focused on economic changes in their lives:

 

“I became mentally strong” 

(Participant A, Stitching training, 25 May 2021)

“[Now I am] standing up boldly without faltering when there are problems” 

(Participant B, Computer Skills Training, 1 June 2021)

“Learning a computer course will enable me to stand on my own feet in the future” 

(Participant C, Computer Skills Training, 31 May 2021)

“What makes me so happy is that I am still developing because of computer learning” (Participant D, Computer Skills Training, 1 June 2021)

“I am [now] the earner of the house”

(Participant E, Jute Bags Training, 29 May 2021)

The act of learning a new skill, of being able to create something that was uniquely theirs, made a major difference in these women’s lives. These feelings of self-confidence in many cases led to empowerment, whether it was wanting to train other women in their communities on these newly acquired skills, or actively planning for their family’s or children’s futures:

She became “independent and able to save money for my family and my children’s future,” and liked that she was “in a position to help others”

 

(Participant F, Fashion Design Training, 28 May 2021)

“I am running my family” 

(Participant G, Fashion Design Training, 30 May 2021)

“I want to become an entrepreneur with these skills and help others” 

(Participant H, Jute Bags Training, 29 May 2021)

“[I am providing] financial support and saving for children’s future” 

(Participant I, Jute Bags Training, 30 May 2021)

For those who received equipment purchases with the addition of training (primarily those who received sewing machines and instructions), these feelings of empowerment were also evident, but among those who just received a cash loan or equipment purchase without training did not emphasize feelings of empowerment. This is perhaps because those who received skills-training were able to build a business, and felt more confident in their abilities to adapt to new situations, or acquire future skills, which became increasingly important as Covid-19 hit the global and Indian economies, requiring more flexibility. For those who had cash loans or equipment purchases, they tended to put more money and effort into the building of a business which, in many cases, was shut down due to Covid-19 lockdowns, and were unable to pivot to other careers. For those who had just invested time into learning a new skill, it was easier to adapt. This was especially true for those studying fashion or sewing, who could start making and selling masks during the pandemic, versus those who had used cash loans to purchase tiffin carts which then couldn’t turn a profit during nationwide lockdowns.

 

Among those who had skills-training, those who received additional support from VMM on top of training reported the highest quality of life changes. These skills-trainings included beautician, jute bags, fashion, and stitching training, where recipients often also received additional supports such as equipment purchases or ‘starter-kits’ and counseling. Over 83% of those receiving this training reported a significant positive increase (a response of 7 or higher on a scale of 0-10) in their quality of life, compared to just 3% of those who received cash loans or equipment purchases. In terms of self-confidence and social standing, 99% of those who received these skills-training with additional support reported positive changes. This focus on more holistic interventions should be further explored in future VMM interventions, as the results among this group were the highest on all available measures for both economic and quality of life.

Conclusion

While overall, VMM helped women in their community through these interventions, it is clear from the data that future interventions should focus on skills-training and more holistic interventions that are multi-faceted in their support. Women who felt like they had a support system and had confidence in their ability to learn and adapt were far more likely to report positive changes in their lives. Women who had cash loans or equipment purchases did not feel this same sense of agency or economic empowerment, on the whole, and future studies should look into whether the cause for this was due to a lack of continued support, or more because of changes brought on by the Covid-19 pandemic, or perhaps because those who received loans and equipment were already employed prior to the interventions. Future studies should also look at the longer-term impacts of these interventions to see if these trends continue. But one thing was clear: when it came to quality of life and empowerment measures, even those who didn’t receive additional holistic supports with their skills-training reported higher levels of satisfaction. This means that future programs by VMM should seek to capitalize on the strengths of skills-training interventions for the populations they serve.