New Delhi, October 15, 2023: On International Rural Women's Day, Walmart Foundation highlighted the efforts of NGOs like PRADAN, ACCESS, Mercy Corps and Srijan, working in collaboration with the Walmart Foundation's Market Access Program.
The Walmart Foundation, through its Market Access Program, supports agrarian communities in nine states across India – Andhra Pradesh, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Odisha, Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, and Maharashtra. In March 2023, Walmart Foundation announced a new five-year strategy that aims to reach 1 million smallholder farmers by 2028 with at least 50% women. Since 2018, the program has invested over $39 million to reach 500 Farmer Producer Organizations/Farmer Producer Groups targeting 800,000 farmers, of which more than half are women.
According to a study conducted by Sambodhi, an India-based impact measurement firm, fewer women in program FPOs had to borrow from their household to pay FPO membership fees (22% vs. 40% comparison), indicating greater independence. An analysis of key farm metrics showed that women farmers had significantly higher cropping intensity (210% for Market Access women farmers vs 149% for the comparison set) as well as diversity, and they cultivated more high-value crops.
The project PROWFIT, implemented by PRADAN, intends to nurture 60 women-led FPOs with the membership of women from small, marginal-holder farmers and mostly tribal households in the rural parts of eastern India. PROWFIT works with 60 FPOs and 120,000 women farmers in West Bengal, Jharkhand, Odisha and Madhya Pradesh.
Under its project UDAAN, ACCESS Development Services works to enhance the incomes of smallholder farmers through Inclusive Value Chains. They engage with 20 FPOs (6 women-led models), and 12,000 farmers; out of which 6,600 would be women farmers, based in West Bengal and Madhya Pradesh.
Srijan’s project is aimed at the economic empowerment of women from small and marginal farmer families through community institutional linkages. They work with 12 FPOs, and 25,000 farmers including 15,000 women farmers in Madhya Pradesh to increase incomes in a sustainable manner. As many as 1,300 rural women of the Amarkantak Horticulture Producer Company, Madhya Pradesh set up a processing unit in Pushparajgarh and increased their total profit by selling processed Kodo (millet) at Rs.80/kg instead of the raw form which was sold at only Rs. 27/kg earlier.
Mercy Corps aims to build digital financial inclusion for 100,000 women smallholder farmers, bundled with services to increase productivity, income and resilience by at least 25% over a two-year period in the states of Andhra Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Telangana. They partner with private sector organisations that have a proven track record to reach women farmers and provide them with services.
Julie Gehrki, Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Walmart Foundation, said, "On International Rural Women's Day, we are excited about the strides made by these resilient women who have harnessed the opportunities presented by the Market Access Program. We are witnessing the emergence of women leaders within Farmer Producer Organisations breaking barriers, and spearheading change. With organisations like ACCESS, Mercy Corps, PRADAN and Srijan by our side, we are forging a path toward greater gender equality, economic empowerment, and sustainable rural development. Together, we are nurturing a brighter future for rural women farmers and their communities.”
By enhancing market access for rural women, the program aims to drive gender equality, alleviate poverty, and nurture sustainable development.
