Greetings from Grameen Foundation for Social Impact !

ANNOUNCEMENT

We are looking for bold and patient donors to support 400 women agri-entrepreneurs in Andhra Pradesh to take a leap to the next level of business growth. GFSI has drawn up an acceleration plan based on the needs of budding women leaders like Chitikela Veera Sumathi, whose story is featured below. Interested? Please connect at awe@grameenfoundation.in We would also like you to watch out for an announcement of a Gender Flagship Event, scheduled for November 2025. Curated around the theme of Tackling Financial Abuse, the event will create awareness on this insidious and entrenched behavior of powerholders, that clips the wings and douses the spirit of many a woman around the globe. Interested to know more or partner with us for the event? Please connect at samriddhi@grameenfoundation.in

GROW Programme is Sowing Progress, Harvesting Impact in East and West Godavari

In the quiet lanes of West and East Godavari, a powerful shift is taking root, led by women who are not just breaking barriers, but building businesses. Under the Generating Rural Opportunities for Women Agri-entrepreneurship (GROW) programme, local women are stepping up as trusted financial agents, with 35+ agri-entrepreneurs (AEs) now offering digital banking services. Five of them have already crossed 1 lakh transactions using L1 devices, earning between INR 4,000–5,000 proving that digital inclusion is not only possible, but profitable. Meanwhile, Sumathi (Agri-Entreprenur) opened a new advanced input center in K Pentapadu village, quickly becoming a one-stop shop for quality agri-resources and support. To keep this momentum strong, 50 AEs recently participated in refresher trainings, sharpening their skills in enterprise development, digital finance, government schemes, and financial product sales. With demo plots being finalized across both districts and online refresher sessions planned for August, GROW continues to nurture not just livelihoods but enabling women and their leadership. These women aren’t just growing crops or businesses rather they’re growing impact.

Chitikela Veera Sumathi Leading Change in K Pentapadu Village

In K Pentapadu village, life moves at a quiet, unhurried pace. The fields stretch wide, mornings are filled with familiar chores, and community ties run deep. For farmers here, simple tasks like accessing banking services meant long walks and hours lost on the road. Among them is Chitikela Veera Sumathi, a mother of two whose days once revolved around morning chores and family care. Through the GROW programme, Sumathi stepped into the world of digital finance, becoming more than just a participant, she became a trusted lifeline, turning her routine into a beacon of opportunity and hope. Farmers now see her as someone they can rely on, accessing essential services at one place. With this growing trust, she is well-positioned to continue expanding her support. Not long ago, local farmers had to travel 4 km just to withdraw cash. Now, equipped with an L1 device through the GROW programme and digital finance training, Sumathi brings services like cash withdrawals, money transfers, and utility bill payments right to their doorstep. Since starting on July 1, 2025, she has already processed over ₹1 lakh in transactions, saving her neighbors time, effort, and travel costs. What began as a training has become a lifeline for her village, with Sumathi earning the trust of her community as a one-stop solution for their financial needs. "When women step out of their homes, they take a step towards positive change" - MANDI-II Exposure visits offer a powerful opportunity to observe and learn from best practices on the ground, insights that can be adapted, replicated, and scaled in new contexts. As part of the Community of Practices initiative, Grameen Foundation for Social Impact (GFSI) facilitated an exposure visit for PRADAN to Varanasi and Mirzapur. The visit was joined by PRADAN’s team along with 11 women FPO members and directors representing four FPOs from Begusarai. The purpose of the visit was to explore the Hub and Spoke model being implemented by Grameen Foundation for Social Impact under Market Access eNabled by Digital Innovation in India (MANDI-II). The model consists of a consortium of 10 FPOs where resourceful FPOs act as ‘hubs’ and provide intensive support in aggregation, quality assurance, market linkage, and technical assistance to the less-resourced ‘spoke’ FPOs located nearby in their geography. The group’s first stop was the Pahariya Mandi in Varanasi, where agricultural marketing officials encouraged them to start small but think big, focusing on opportunities in horticulture and animal husbandry. At Banaras-Organo FPC, the women saw firsthand how the Hub enabled FPOs through inter-FPO trade and women-led primary processing of pointed gourds. They also visited APEDA’s integrated packhouse, witnessing the entire export process. The next day in Mirzapur, the team discovered sustainable farming innovations at Nav Chetna Agro Center, from drip irrigation to vermicomposting and exchanged ideas on how these practices are improving productivity and incomes. This visit was more than just observation; it was a powerful exchange of knowledge, setting the stage for stronger, more inclusive agricultural enterprises back home. For more details, click here https://gfsi.in/agriculture-and-livelihoods/"

Sector Highlights

1. Major MSP Hikes to Support Farmer Incomes–
   The Indian government approved significant hikes in Minimum Support Prices (MSP) for 14 Kharif crops for the 2025-26 season. Read more
2. Erratic Monsoons Impacting Crop Yields–
   
   • Multiple national and state media reports confirmed that July 2025 saw erratic monsoon patterns, with a 15% deviation from historical averages leading to substantial decreases in sowing area for millet and oilseeds, and causing crop losses and inflation.
   • While the above-cited sources focus on MSP hikes, government and meteorological updates in July reflected widespread concern about monsoon irregularities, delays in sowing, and reductions in yield, reinforcing this as a critical issue. Read more

Sanya’s Journey with Lakshyavati

Lakshyavati, supported by the Mariam Society, is changing lives across rural Maharashtra by helping girls stay in school and dream bigger. Since 2019, over 200 girls like Sanya Durve have benefited from this program that provides more than just bursaries, it offers mentorship and hope. When the pandemic pushed education online, Lakshyavati’s support helped Sanya buy a smartphone on easy installments, keeping her connected to her classes and ambitions even when the world seemed to stand still. For Sanya, education isn’t just about textbooks—it’s her way out and her way up. At 18, she’s pursuing a degree in Commerce and Computer Applications at YCC College, with plans for an MBA. Her story is rooted in resilience. After losing her father at a young age, Sanya watched her mother, Varsha, hold the family together by managing multiple jobs and showing her, day by day, that financial independence isn’t just important, it’s empowering. That lesson stuck. Today, Sanya uses her bursary for extra classes, tutors younger children to earn a little more, and codes in Java with quiet confidence. Her commute to college is more than just a routine—it’s a daily reminder that she’s moving forward on her own terms. “My mother is my biggest inspiration,” she says. “I want to build a future that reflects her strength and helps others like me do the same.” For more details, click here https://gfsi.in/portfolio/lakshyavati/

Sector Highlights

1. Expansion of Government Schemes Supporting Women Entrepreneurs
   A range of financial and mentorship schemes continued to accelerate, including Mudra Yojana (special focus loans for women), Stand-Up India (large loans for first-time female entrepreneurs), and the newly expanded SC/ST Women Entrepreneurs Scheme, which aims to support 5 lakh first-time women entrepreneurs from marginalized communities over five years with loans up to ₹2 crore. Major ministries and SIDBI backed these efforts, while programs like Mahila Udyam (SIDBI) and TREAD provided business development support and training, particularly for rural and small-scale women-led businesses. Know more
2. Launch and Rapid Scaling of the Swavalambini Program
   In February 2025, the Ministry of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (MSDE) and NITI Aayog launched the Swavalambini Program to empower female students in higher education. This program delivered entrepreneurship awareness training to 1,200 students and hands-on development training to 600, alongside mentorship, workshops, and structured incubator support. By July 2025, more than 31,000 women had been trained under related entrepreneurship programs—including the PM Janman and special tribal upliftment schemes—demonstrating significant reach into both mainstream and rural/tribal communities. Know more

Are "women-centric" financial products truly gender-transformative?

On 29th July, Grameen Foundation for Social Impact (GFSI) facilitated a Community of Practice session on Are "women-centric" financial products truly gender-transformative? Moderated by Dr. Resmi P. Bhaskaran, the discussion featured Ms. M. Shakila Ramanathan and Dr. J. Tamil Kumaran (JTK) from Dvara E-Dairy Solutions Pvt. Ltd. They explored how, despite women managing livestock and being loan applicants, financial control often stays with men, highlighting deep-rooted cultural barriers.

The panel emphasized that real change goes beyond technology, requiring ongoing fieldwork, trust-building, and human connection. Women gaining confidence through direct access to earnings is a promising shift, but male “permission” still often limits true empowerment. Dr. Bhaskaran stressed that financial inclusion must be paired with intentional design, monitoring, and community engagement to dismantle these barriers.

For more details, click here
https://gfsi.in/innovations-in-digital-finance/

Sector Highlights

In July 2025, India’s digital finance sector was defined by regulatory breakthroughs, rapid FinTech innovation, and continued global leadership in digital payments and financial inclusion.

1. Regulatory and Technology Innovations:
   The government advanced a new Unified Fintech Licensing framework through the Draft Indian Fintech Regulation Bill, allowing payments, lending, investments, and insurance platforms to scale on a single regulatory approval. Most fintechs are now required to provide real-time anonymized data to regulators like the RBI and SEBI via APIs, moving oversight from periodic reporting to continuous, live risk monitoring. AI-driven financial platforms must offer explainable decisions and are audited for fairness, while all digital financial data must be localized within India. Transparent digital lending standards—borrower consent, cooling-off, full disclosure—were enforced to combat predatory practices, and the groundwork was laid for end-to-end algorithmic explainability. Know more
2. UPI and Digital Payment Milestones:
   The Unified Payments Interface (UPI) continued its trajectory as the backbone of India’s digital finance, with over 18 billion monthly transactions. UPI’s success is driven by interoperability across banks and apps, fast real-time settlements, QR payments, and the ability to consolidate multiple accounts in one app. India’s public digital payments infrastructure drew international attention as a model for seamless, secure, and inclusive finance. Know more
3. AI, Blockchain, and Financial Inclusion:
   AI and machine learning powered hyper-personalized banking, dynamic risk assessment, fraud detection, and financial advice. Blockchain technology enhanced transparency and security, particularly in cross-border payments. Mobile-first design, biometric authentication, and digital KYC further reduced onboarding friction and fraud risks. India’s drive toward a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC—Digital Rupee) expanded, adding a state-backed digital cash option. Know more
4. Financial Inclusion and Public Initiatives:
   The RBI’s Financial Inclusion Index rose in 2025, with tens of millions gaining access to digital accounts and government schemes leveraging digital rails for targeted delivery of subsidies and entitlements. The 10th anniversary of the Digital India program was celebrated, recognizing the transformation in digital financial empowerment and the mainstreaming of digital literacy. Know more

Grameen Foundation India News

AgriPath

Training Enumerators, Shaping Equal Voices, and Unearthing the Science Beneath Our Fields On a warm June morning in 2025, SRNO enumerators gathered together with notebooks in hand for second round of data collection for AgriPath Project. They weren’t there for routine survey work; instead they were gearing up to listen, learn, and bring back the reflections, data point and stories in the fields. Through 3 days of rigorous preparation, they mastered the art of asking the right questions, understood every detail of the survey tools, and committed to the ethical standards that turn data into truth. By mid-July, their work in villages and farms had wrapped up, leaving behind not just completed questionnaires but a treasure trove of insights that will help assess the real impact of AgriPath’s digital agro-advisory services on smallholder farmers.

And beneath the soil, quite literally another story was unfolding. Across the project area, 45 soil samples were carefully taken, each scoop representing a different corner of the land’s character. This wasn’t random digging; it was science in action. Every sample was part of a meticulously designed framework to capture the subtle variations in soil properties. The plan, outlined in a detailed Terms of Reference, will guide lab tests and inform smarter, more targeted agricultural interventions ensuring farmers get advice rooted (pun intended) in real evidence. For more details, click hare https://grameenfoundation.in