A series of workshops on financial literacy and entrepreneurship were organised at Gurgaon's Swabhiman kendra. The workshop's main purpose was to increase financial literacy among domestic workers, educate them about their rights and choices so that they can be informed and self-sufficient, and equip them with information on entrepreneurship.
The workshop was led by Mrs. Anita Kapoor (Secretary of the Sehri Mahila Gharelu Kamgaar Union), who has experience teaching women about many aspects of financial literacy and motivating them to create self-help groups. A four-day training programme was held in December for 30 women domestic workers, 5 young self-employed women, and 5 adolescent girls.
The workshop focused on the following components of financial literacy and well-being, reinforcing women domestic workers' social and economic empowerment by helping them as they learn, care for, and lead one another through the challenges that the pandemic's second wave imposed on their life.
Women domestic workers were trained the importance of saving in their daily lives, as well as how to use savings in an emergency, to start a business, and to improve their negotiating power and independence. They were also taught about the importance of budgeting when it came to saving money. Role play, an art-based participatory methodology, was utilised to establish a shared understanding of moneylender credit and loans, and how it benefits moneylenders while trapping women (loan seekers) in a vicious cycle of poverty and debt.
Domestic workers also learned about the significance of entrepreneurship, whether as an individual or as a group, and how it pertains to empowerment. The women domestic workers of Gurgaon has been involved in the process of visioning business ideas from the past 7 months and they have also been able to regularly hold meetings as collective by themselves.
Swabhiman kendra has been used as a regular gathering place, with the women keeping minutes and establishing basic norms and rules for the group.
They even explored taking out bank loans as a group to establish their own business during the workshop. The resource person has had in-depth discussions with the women domestic employees about some of the marketing strategies.
The event was quite engaging, with women sharing their savings triumphs and how it has helped them negotiate with their family members' respect. Some women who have been saving for a long time encouraged other women to do so as well.
By the end of the workshop, the group decided to contribute a fixed amount which can be used by any group member, but they must return it with minimal interest. The women agreed to the power of collective and how they can support each other during crisis.