IKEA enhances empowerment of women

The IKEA Foundation in collaboration with the UN Development Program (UNDP) have paved the way for women in Uttar Pradesh, Carpet belt and India to be self-sufficient and better equipped socially, economically and politically.

IKEA has funded and continues to support UNICEF managed programs since 2000 with an aim to provide at least 50,000 women with a range of beneficial inputs to help them become entrepreneurs, contribute substantially to their household income, strengthen legal awareness and participate in the local political decision-making processes of their villages. Functional Self-help groups are designed to support women on various levels as they are now considered active and respected influencers in their communities.

Local motivators are deployed to teach village women about how to manage sanitation as well as health and diet within the family. Women are taught to take control over their children’s health and have also been made aware of the health insurance facilities and benefits available to them.

Through dedicated resources in the form of master trainers of functional literacy, IKEA together with the UNDP along with their partners developed training modules in financial literacy and leadership. To further refine their capabilities, more than 70 master trainers from among the women community have been trained to develop women’s skills in craft on a mass scale basis. Women have also been inducted into micro credit schemes that enable the startup of small businesses. To help enable women manage credit in an effective manner, about 3,000 have been trained in good credit management practices.

IKEA continues to enhance the lives of various demographics through innovative and productive programs in different parts of the world as part of their ongoing corporate social responsibility.