Wal-Mart looks to empower women in India

CHENNAI, India Wal-Mart announced that as part of its $1 million grant to CARE, it has launched a Cashew Value Chain Initiative to help empower women in India. Over the next year, Walmart and CARE will create a women owned-and-operated community-based institution to provide more equitable and consistent incomes for approximately 750 women in the cashew farming and processing sector in the coastal districts of Tamil Nadu State in Southern India, Cuddalore and Nagapattinam.

"This project will improve economic opportunities for socially and economically marginalized women and girls in southern India through the promotion of women-owned and -managed cashew enterprises," said Raj Jain, managing director and CEO of Bharti Walmart. "We are excited about the difference we will make in the lives of these women as we are confident the project will improve their entrepreneurial skills and capacity to directly link to the retail market."

Over the next year, the program will help to set up three women-owned and managed cashew processing units and 15 literacy centers. Training programs will be conducted for participating women and their daughters on basic social services, rights and entitlement issues. The program will also establish direct links between cashew producers, the women-owned processing units, and the global marketplace.