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Unit 6: Grassroots Entrepreneurs through Self-Help Groups

Though at the initial stage women entrepreneurship developed only at urban areas, lately Notes
it has extended its wings to rural areas.

Grassroots entrepreneurs are civic activists who take the initiative to create campaigns or
other organizational ventures to tackle social problems – in our case, to expand liberty.
The idea is also known as social entrepreneurship.

Unlike business entrepreneurs who are motivated by profits, grassroots entrepreneurs
are motivated to improve society.

Like business entrepreneurs, grassroots entrepreneurs see and act upon what others miss:
opportunities to improve system, create solutions and invent new approaches that create
social value.

Each group selects one animator and two representatives from among themselves. The
animator is responsible for providing leadership to the group and to maintain the various
registers. The representatives assist the animator and maintain the bank accounts of the
group.

Individually, a poor is not only weak in socio-economic term but also lacks access to the
knowledge and information, which are the most important components of today’s
development process.

Recent trends in India and even at global level women are far more superior to men in
various aspects of development. Only problem is that so far the society has given little
chance to women to enter into the fields of various economic activities.
Economically poor individual gains strength as part of a group. Besides, financing through
SHGs reduces transaction costs for both lenders and borrowers.

Small loans created by SHGs seem to positively affect poverty by creating entrepreneurship
and greater self-reliance among the poor.

Becoming a member in SHG ensures women to become socially and politically empowered.
The concept of SHG generally rejuvenate the rural women as it helps in breaking the
vicious circle of poverty among women, thereby to become economically viable. Self
Help Groups (SHGs) have been successful in empowering rural women through
entrepreneurial activities.

6.5 Keywords

Community: Community usually refers to a social unit larger than a small village that shares
common values.
Grassroots Entrepreneurs: They are civic activists who take the initiative to create campaigns or
other organizational ventures to tackle social problems.
Micro Credit: An extremely small loan given to impoverished people to help them become
self-employed.

Mission: A sentence describing a company’s function, markets and competitive advantages;
a short written statement of your business goals and philosophies.
Non-Governmental Organization (NGO): It is a voluntary organization established to undertake
social intermediation.
Self-Help Group (SHG): A self-help group is a village-based financial intermediary usually
composed of 10–20 local women.

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