The Mangrove Circle is a targeted venture to economically empower the widows in the Sundarbans. The initiative combines a multi-stage approach, including assessments, vocational training, corporate partnerships, and formal employment placement, to enable women to transform their lives by acquiring skills needed in the formal job market.
The project commences with qualitative research involving widowed women across Sundarbans villages, documenting their lived experiences, understanding nuances of their economic hardship, and conflicts between income generation and childcare duties. Guided by the research, the program extends to designing an intervention best suited to address the on-ground barriers. The initiative will facilitate intensive skills training programs in collaboration with organizations operating in Sundarbans communities. The program aims to equip participants with employment-oriented competencies aligned with formal sector requirements.
The initiative also plans to develop a corporate pledge network by engaging companies through their CSR departments to commit to hiring program graduates, ensuring that the facilitated programs result in meaningful empowerment. The details of the pledge network will be published as an accessible resource to help create transparency and amplify opportunity creation.