Walmart India announces 'Entrepreneur development program' for women

Reinforcing its commitment to Women Economic Empowerment, Walmart India announced an entrepreneur development program for women and also to encourage for women owned businesses (WOBs) in the supply-chain, announced the softer payment terms for them in their first year of empanelment with Walmart India. 

Speaking at the launch of Andhra Pradesh Rural Inclusive Growth Project (APRIGP) on Thursday, Krish Iyer, President & CEO, Walmart India said, “I am happy to announce that Andhra Pradesh will be one of the first states in India where we will start an entrepreneurial program for women in collaboration with SERP (Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty). Under this program, we will leverage our expertise and knowledge to guide and advise aspiring women entrepreneurs in starting modern Kirana stores in their communities. Complimenting SERP’s ability to reach and scale, we will contribute our knowledge in retailing to develop a strong network of women entrepreneurs. Various aspects of setting up and running their business (store) including marketing, financial and leadership skills will be part of this initiative. We hope to include many such modules to this program to enable them to serve consumers with affordable, safe and quality merchandise.”

He added, “It also gives me immense pleasure to announce today on the UN Women Entrepreneurship Day, softer payment terms for women-owned businesses in our supply chain. This easing of payment terms, which will be available for their first year of empanelment with Walmart India will help women owned businesses better manage their working capital needs, have more stock, and invest money for funding and scaling up their businesses etc. Walmart has an ongoing commitment to empower women around the world through its Women Economic Empowerment (WEE) initiative and we hope that through our initiatives, we will make their lives better. Sourcing from women-owned businesses contributes to our reputation for great assortment and quality local products, and we are always looking for opportunities to increase our sourcing from women-owned businesses.”

Recently, Walmart India launched an exclusive ‘Women-owned’ logo in collaboration with international NGO WEConnect International to identify products made by women-owned businesses on shelves. Walmart is also in the process of creating a ‘Global Women-Owned Business Directory’ so that global buyers have access to women-owned business suppliers from India and other countries. Walmart has also trained 17,891 women with life skills in India through its Women in Factories (WiF) training program. Launched in 2011, WiF is working toward empowering 60,000 women working in 150 factories that supply products to retailers in Bangladesh, Central America, China, and India.

Walmart India supports initiatives focused on enhancing opportunities in skills training, environment sustainability, women empowerment and community development. Through training and sourcing, Walmart India’s Women Economic Empowerment Initiative is providing sustainable employment opportunities and significantly expanding economic opportunities for women across India. Through a combination of local programs and support from the Walmart Foundation, Walmart India is positioned to impact more than 75,000 women in India. As an ongoing commitment to empowering women around the world and helping WOBs succeed and grow, Walmart has committed to source $20 billion from women for its US business and double sourcing from women in international markets.