In rural communities across India, access to mobile phones and digital tools is proving to be a game-changer—especially for women who are ready to lead. Our MPowered project, in partnership with Tata Communications, is equipping women not only with technology, but with the skills and confidence to build sustainable businesses and reshape their communities, putting an end to extreme poverty.
Namita and Sastri are two women who participated in the MPowered project, and their journeys reflect the transformative power of digital inclusion.
Namita lives in Odisha and manages multiple microenterprises: a convenience store, food processing machinery rental, livestock rearing, and vegetable cultivation. Before joining the MPowered program, her income came from small labor jobs. Today, she uses the mobile phone she was provided with through the program to expand her business knowledge and track her income.
She shares that the PoP Livelihoods app, one of MPowered’s key digital tools, was incredibly helpful in teaching her how to better care for her goats and cows while increasing her profits. For vegetable farming, Namita now has the option to turn to YouTube, where she’s picked up practical agricultural techniques that help her grow high-value crops.
“Before, I had to rely on doing small labor jobs, but now I have my own shop and raise livestock. The extra income has helped me keep my family fed,” Namita shared.
Sastri’s story begins in Raipur, where she worked long, unsafe hours as a construction laborer and farmhand, earning just enough to survive. She had never even held a mobile phone before joining MPowered. Today, she manages multiple income-generating activities, including agriculture, fishery, fertilizer production, and livestock rearing.
With the support of the PoP Livelihoods app, coaching, and skills training through MPowered, Sastri has not only improved her economic situation—she’s become a leader. The app helps her manage her money, monitor market trends, and learn new farming techniques via YouTube.
Now the president of a local federation, Sastri advises women in her community on how to start their own enterprises. When we spoke with her, she was on her way to meet with a group of 25 women seeking her guidance.
Through tools like the PoP Livelihoods app and personalized coaching, women like Namita and Sastri are not just building better livelihoods—they’re building futures full of choice, dignity, and leadership.
Digital access is not just about connectivity, it’s about unlocking potential. In the hands of women, it creates ripple effects, uplifting entire communities.
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