Internet Saathi Program-Women’s Organisation in Rural Development

Internet Saathi program was launched in the year 2015 by Google and Tata Trusts. The aim was to increase digital literacy in rural areas and bridge the digital gender divide. Previously, the rural area in India lagged completely in terms of digital literacy among women. But with the Internet Saathi program, women are encouraged to be a part of this digital change and shape their future. This inclusive step toward the rural community of women proved to increase the growth of women-driven businesses in India. 

How does the Internet Saathi Program Work?

The program focuses on building a community of technologically sound women. This means they know about internet services and how to extract maximum gain from their usage. Women who are digitally literate train other women and hence form a network that is growing to date. This program has imparted digital literacy to the rural population. The Internet Saathis work with the trusts and feed them with important field data. This data serves as input in district-level programs. They bring insight into how their community uses the power of the internet.

Second Phase of Internet Saathi Program

Foundation for Rural Entrepreneurship Development (FREND) was established for producing livelihood for rural communities under the Internet Saathi program. FREND is the evolution of the Internet Saathi program to the second phase. The earning opportunities will help in sustaining the network and would bring a means to livelihood. Through this digital initiative, the market can be globally focused but locally placed. This would create massive opportunities for rural communities and high-end income sources. The trust aims to bring value to the women not just in terms of income but also in support elements. The support elements will scale the enterprise and would yield success.

How has Internet Saathi made a difference?

As reported by Google, only one out of ten internet users is a woman. The wide gender gap when it comes to accessing the internet shows the digital literacy and low accessibility to such services. The Internet Saathi program proved to set a difference in pattern. 

•  70% of women in rural areas used the internet for the first time with the help of the Internet Saathi Program.
• 53% of women who have been trained under the Internet Saathi initiative now use the internet for upskilling themselves.
• Health care and accessibility to health have been improved significantly by 30%.
•  According to Google India, the initiative has 80,000+ volunteers in 2021.
• The program has penetrated 3,00,000 rural areas.
• Internet Saathi has been bridging the digital gender divide and now 4 out of 10 are women.
• With the Internet Saathi program, women in rural communities are now earning lakhs.
• Digital literacy among women taught them about digital trends and market penetration.

Advantages of Internet Saathi Program:

Even during the Covid 19 pandemic when the world stopped, these women chose the online platform to earn a livelihood. This was made possible through the Internet Saathi Program launched in 2015. The five years before the pandemic up-skilled the rural women to find the right use of the internet in their business. The scalability increased empowering these women entrepreneurs. The initiative by Google and Tata trust improved the digital literacy of women in India and made them self-sufficient to take their business forward.

States covered by Internet Saathi Program

The initiative was started with Rajasthan and now has swept states including Karnataka, Jharkhand, Bihar, Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Assam, Gujarat, Andhra Pradesh, Tripura, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttar Pradesh.

Conclusion

This is a world driven by technology and every day brings transformation. The digital shift has an ever-changing impact on communities across the world. Through the Internet Saathi Program the involvement of the rural community of women brought a leap. The way digitalisation was perceived by such a community changed. The right guidance, right community and right use can change the direction of growth. The reach of 30 million women in five years has brought a huge difference to the digital world as well as to the entrepreneurial community.