Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP) is a

non-governmental organization A non-governmental organization (NGO) or non-governmental organisation (see American and British English spelling differences#-ise, -ize (-isation, -ization), spelling differences) is an organization that generally is formed independent from g ...

based in

Pune Pune (; ; also known as Poona, ( the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million As of 2021, Pune Metropolitan Region is the largest i ...

, India. It was co-founded by

Prema Gopalan Prema Gopalan (1955/1956 – 29 March, 2022) was an Indian social activist. She co-founded the Society for the Promotion of Area Resource Centers (SPARC) in 1984. She then founded and has been executive director of Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SS ...

and

Sheela Patel Sheela Patel (born 1952) is an activist and academic involved with people living in slums and shanty towns. Early life In 1974, Patel received her Masters in Social Work from the Tata Institute of Social Sciences in Mumbai. She was then involve ...

in 1998 and aims to support female entrepreneurs in areas such as agriculture, health and sanitation. Its work has been recognised by the

United Nations Development Programme The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP)french: Programme des Nations unies pour le développement, PNUD is a United Nations agency tasked with helping countries eliminate poverty and achieve sustainable economic growth and human dev ...

and the

United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) established an international environmental treaty to combat "dangerous human interference with the climate system", in part by stabilizing greenhouse gas concentrations in th ...

History

Following the Latur earthquake of 1993 in Maharashtra,

focused upon supporting rural communities in the region of

Marathwada Marathwada () is a proposed state and geographical region of the Indian state of Maharashtra. It was formed during the Nizam's rule and was part of the then Hyderabad State. The region coincides with the Aurangabad division of Maharashtra. I ...

. By 1998 the rehabilitation projects were complete and this led to the setting up of Swayam Shikshan Prayog (SSP) by Gopalan and

. It is a

(NGO) based in

. SSP aims to educate and support female entrepreneurship in areas such as agriculture, health, nutrition, sanitation and clean energy. Since 2009 it has assisted over 350,000 grassroots women. SSP provides assistance to women working in the field of clean or

sustainable energy Energy is sustainable if it "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs". Most definitions of sustainable energy include considerations of environmental aspects such as green ...

. The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) reported in 2019 that SSP had reached over 4 million people in India, mainly in Maharashtra,

Bihar Bihar (; ) is a state in eastern India. It is the 2nd largest state by population in 2019, 12th largest by area of , and 14th largest by GDP in 2021. Bihar borders Uttar Pradesh to its west, Nepal to the north, the northern part of West ...

Gujarat Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the nin ...

and

Tamil Nadu Tamil Nadu (; , TN) is a state in southern India. It is the tenth largest Indian state by area and the sixth largest by population. Its capital and largest city is Chennai. Tamil Nadu is the home of the Tamil people, whose Tamil languag ...

. Links had been made between 1,100 female entrepreneurs working on clean energy systems in eight different districts. The government of Maharashtra government chose SSP to be the group which runs the Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana programme. This has involved over 25,000 female farmers in 600 village working to improve their agricultural methods. SSP developed a model of livelihood diversification to reduce the risks and vulnerabilities while increasing the capacities of small and marginal farmers. The Women-led Climate Resilient Farming (WCRF) model of SSP promotes the multi-cropping of indigenous climate-appropriate food crops. This ensures household food and income security with good nutrition while conserving water and natural resources. Through our entrepreneurship development program, SSP has supported thousands of women to start businesses and grow by creating farmer producer groups. SSP's flagship initiative, "Women's Initiative to Learn and Lead" (WILL), focuses on women's agency and leadership, enabling them to participate in governance, address critical issues at home and in the community, and empower other women.

Awards

Swayam Shikshan Prayog won the sixth Billionth South Asia Award 2015 for its work on rural medical assistance. In 2016, SSP won the

(UNFCCC) Momentum for Change Lighthouse Activity Award for its support of rural networks building clean energy systems. In the following years, SSP won the

Equator Prize The Equator Prize, organized by the Equator Initiative within the United Nations Development Programme,

2017 awarded by

; Schwab Foundation's Social Entrepreneur of the Year India Award 2018; Schwab Foundation's Outstanding Social Entrepreneur of the Year (WEF) award 2019; NITI Aayog’s Women Transforming India Award 2021; and, Global Local Adaptation (CGA)’s Local Adaptation Award for Capacity and Knowledge (for the Women Led Climate Resilient Farming Model) at COP27 in 2022.

References

External links

{{Authority control Women's organisations based in India Women from Maharashtra Organizations established in 1998 Social entrepreneurship 1998 establishments in Maharashtra