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Workshop Report on Networking of SHGs - Concepts, Issues and Practices

This paper discusses various aspects of Self-Help-Group networks and federations
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This report presents participant discussions at a workshop organized by NIPCCD, the lead capacity-building organization for the Swashakti Project (a Government of India project that aims to strengthen the processes that promote the empowerment of women), and Sa-Dhan, the association of community development finance institutions of India.

The workshop discusses the different models of networking of Self-Help- Groups (SHGs) into larger associations, and the lessons learnt concerning their role and long-term sustainability.

The two-day workshop had four technical sessions, which included presentations, open discussions, as well as group work exercises.

The participants discussed:

  • The importance of financial and operational sustainability of SHG networks;
  • The definition of SHG federations, the main features of these federations, and their categorization based on function and management control;
  • The strategic choices that need to be considered when designing federations, with examples from Andhra Pradesh (AP), India;
  • The importance of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in establishing networks of SHGs;
  • The role of Shramik Bharti, an NGO, in establishing federations;
  • The financial practices and practices of financial intermediation of 24 SHG federations in AP, based on a study by APMAS, a technical and managerial support institution that works for women’s empowerment and poverty alleviation;
  • The factors that made federations financially sustainable, as well as the measures of sustainability and the methods by which federations could become sustainable;
  • The formalization of federation and different legal frameworks available to them.

About this Publication

By NIPCCD & Sa-Dhan
Published