New Delhi: Visa has pledged $1 million to United Way Mumbai (UWM) over the next three years to empower women-owned and women-centric businesses. The project will be implemented in a total of 170 villages/towns across Uttar Pradesh, Assam, Maharashtra and Karnataka and will focus on building sustainable, long-term skills for entrepreneurship among the participants. The project aims to train more than 8,500 women and connect them with financial services relevant to their enterprises and communities.
Sandeep Ghosh, Group Country Manager, India and South Asia, Visa, said, “At Visa, we have strongly advocated and supported the growth of small businesses focused exclusively on women. Our partnership with United Way Mumbai will provide financial and entrepreneurial skills to women from communities who do not have the same access and privileges as others. As women are empowered, so do the communities they represent. We look forward to this partnership making meaningful contributions to deserving communities in the times to come.”
The Visa-UWM project will target three main impact areas: access to knowledge and services, entrepreneurship development, and formation of sustainable self-help groups for financial inclusion.
George Aikara, CEO, United Way Mumbai said, “We at United Way Mumbai strongly believe that India’s growth story is incomplete without equal participation of women. Our efforts are aimed at removing barriers to women’s participation in the social and economic spheres. We are excited to work with Visa as they share our commitment to democratizing the financial ecosystem by bringing women into it, and we look forward to supporting this partnership.
With its iFundWomen grant program, Visa has empowered women-owned businesses in India in the past. Recent initiatives include upskilling women micro-entrepreneurs nationwide in the aftermath of the pandemic and helping 50 million small and medium-sized businesses globally get their businesses online and future-proof. As part of Visa’s goal to enable businesses to thrive, the company partnered with Hand in Hand International to provide $2.4 million over three years to 75% of women-owned businesses. Visa also launched its women-owned small business initiative named ‘She’s Next’ to empower women entrepreneurs in 2019.
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