Vodafone Idea Foundation’s RUDI SandeshaVyavhar Project is Empowering Rural Women in Rajasthan with Livelihood Opportunities, using technology
Jaipur,18thJuly, 2022 : KailashChouhan hails from the village of GamraBamaniya in Dungarpur. For the longest time, Kailash was prohibited from working since the idea of women leaving the house for work was considered a taboo in her community. A training session organized by Vodafone Idea Foundation’s RUDI SandeshaVyavharprogramme (RSV), empowered Kailash to break all cultural barriers and has set her on the path of financial independence. Today, she earns a monthly income of Rs 10,000 to Rs 12,000 as a door-to-door RUDI saleswoman. She has also become technology savvy as she efficiently operates her smart phone to process online transactions.
Like Kailash, over 1350 women across Dungarpur, Udaipur, and Banswara in Rajasthan have benefited from Vodafone Idea Foundation’s RUDI SandeshaVyavhar initiative. RUDI SandeshaVyavhar was conceptualized to address the challenges faced by RUDIbens (rural women) to procure and sell agro-based food products to customers in timely manners.
Acknowledging this issue, Vodafone Idea Foundation in partnership with MahilaSewa Trust (MST) set-up a supply chain system with an android-based mobile application. The application provides a simple, localized, and real time solution to grassroots saleswomen for tracking customer needs and placing orders, tracking inventory, and managing their businesses efficiently. It has automated the supply chain process, bringing about a seamless integration between business functions such as accounts and finance, sales and distribution, procurement of raw material, dealers and distribution networks. As a result, it has enhanced efficiencies for RUDI women to sell farm produce within their local communities, reduced travel time for these women by 90 per cent, and helped generate more business opportunities.
Commenting on the impact of the RSV project, P Balaji, Chief Regulatory & Corporate Affairs Officer, VIL, and Director, Vodafone Idea Foundation, said, “The use of mobile technology has changed lives of individuals, businesses and society forever in countless ways. Vodafone Idea Foundation is focused at leveraging technology to make a difference and enhance lives of communities across the country. Women empowerment has been a core focus area as we believe that women are the biggest change makers of the society. Our mobile technology based solution RUDI SandeshaVyavhar, enables livelihood security for women. It instills confidence, imparts knowledge on digital and financial literacy, helps them improve their productivity, and most importantly makes them financially independent. Having started the programme in Gujarat, we are happy to extend it to many other states including Rajasthan, empowering the rural women of our nation.”
Vodafone Idea Foundation’s RUDI SandeshaVyavahar project identifies select rural women entrepreneurs as master trainers and trains them on aspects such as setting up supply chain system, use of RUDI mobile application, finance management, etc. These master trainers in turn educate women from their vicinity, empowering them to become a RUDI saleswomen in their local areas. In Rajasthan, the RUDI project has enabled over 1350 RUDIbens to engage in micro entrepreneur activities using the RSV mobile application. These RUDIbens together have successfully sold affordable and hygienic products worth Rs 58 lakhs that have benefitted over 1.68 lakh people.
