The social enterprise space is alive and well in India. ESAF Enterprise Development Foundation is committed to providing long-term solutions to poverty, hunger and malnutrition. We stimulate a sustainable market by creating demand for affordable products and ensuring a stable supply chain.

Poverty has remained a serious problem in the rural areas of the country due to the absence of rural infrastructure and services such as safe drinking water, electricity, waste and sewage disposal facilities, health care and educational services, as well as a lack of adequate housing facilities. Over the last two decades, cost of consumable goods has considerably increased. To encourage small and medium enterprises many women self-help groups (SHGs) and cooperatives have been formed by ESAF. Proper training has been provided to them for developing their skills and providing support for marketing.

Through actively promoting Self-help Groups among women and through linking these associations with financial institutions, investment and working capital needs of their members can be met. To make the best use of capital inputs, SHGs and their federations need vocational and enterprise development training as well as assistance for establishing links to new market outlets for their products, both domestically and for export. ESAF supports them in both ways and is bent on serving their needs effectively.