NIESBUD Signs an MoU with Ministry of Rural Development

NEW DELHI:
National Institute of Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development (NIESBUD) — an organisation under the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) to develop a sustainable model for promoting entrepreneurship at the grass roots by initiating the Start-up Village Entrepreneurship Programme (SVEP).

SVEP is a sub-component of Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana – National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) of the Ministry of Rural Development. It aims to support entrepreneurs in rural areas to set-up enterprises at the village-level in non-agricultural sectors. The partnership will enable the rural community by helping them set up their trades and provide complete support till they are stabilized. This pragmatic intervention will provide knowledge, advisory and financial support to the public and will help create village-level community cadre.

Under the partnership rural entrepreneurs will be able to access banking systems for receiving financial support for starting their enterprises, including support from MUDRA bank. Integrated ICT techniques and tools will also be provided for training and capacity building along with enterprise advisory services to augment the entrepreneurship ecosystem in India’s villages. The beneficiaries of the project are from the Self-Help Group (SHG) ecosystem of DAY-NRLM and the scheme not only supports existing enterprises but new enterprises as well.

On the partnership, Rajesh Aggarwal, Secretary, Ministry of Skill Development & Entreprenuership said, “Our Prime Minister, Narendra Modi has highlighted that Indians should dream of becoming job creators from job seekers and in this regard, SVEP will help create an innovative ecosystem, accelerating economic and social gains at the community level. The scheme also aims at building an inclusive society by providing equal opportunities to all along with the required financial support. India is a land of opportunities and by helping our youth access these prospects, we are catering to their aspirations. I am confident that this partnership will help in training the rural community and will provide them with necessary resources for entrepreneurship to increase their income and will pave the way for building Aatmanirbhar Bharat.”

Rural entrepreneurship can play a significant role in the overall economic development of India. A huge number of employment opportunities can be generated because of the rural entrepreneurship for the people who are living in rural or remote geographies. The old-age artistic heritage has also been conserved by protecting as well as promoting the rural entrepreneurship. Economists too have stressed on how economic backwardness of a region can be attributed to its lack of entrepreneurs. Therefore, in the past few years, Skill India has been working persistently to bridge the skill gap by giving entrepreneurs easy access to funding, providing the right mentorship, and improving ease of doing business in the country.