Projects In Asia:New Era Trust

INDIA ($4,350)
Three Income-Generating Projects
Project Coordinator - Mr. K. Antonysamy

Fifty-two Dalit, landless women from Erode District, Tamil Nadu are participating in this one-year project.

The beneficiaries are landless or small farming women, mostly in women-headed households. NET has formed 25 self-help groups and has given training on capacity building, organic agriculture, established non-formal education centers for child laborers, conducted environment awareness campaigns, and helped to link the self-help groups to the local banks. The propject will begin with training in capacity-building (social and economic empowerment issues such as gender and social discrimination against women, government welfare schemes for Dalit and marginalized people, self-help group concepts, and various income-generating projects based on the natural resources available in their surrounding area. A one-day training will be provided every three months. Loans will be repaid in 10 equal payments at 12% annual interest. Anticipated economics are:

From Dr. R. Kannan’s report, “New Era Trust has good rapport with the target people. Target women are organized into self-help groups, which have regular meetings. All the target women are landless women. The proposed projects are feasible and viable. Target area, Balasamudram, is a thickly populated town and is situated near the pilgrim center called Palani. New Era Trust has two trained staff.”

Project Completed: December 31, 2010

Report from partner