National Rural Economic Transformation Project

• The government of India and World Bank have signed $250 Million Agreement for the National Rural Economic Transformation Project (NRETP) under the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM).

• A key focus of the project will be to promote women-owned and women-led farm and non-farm enterprises across value chains; enable them to build businesses that help them access finance, markets and networks; and generate employment.
• The other key component of the project includes developing financial products using digital financial services to help small producer collectives scale-up and engage with the market.
• It will also support youth skills development, in coordination with the Deen Dayal Upadhyaya Grameen Kaushalya Yojana.
• Peer-to-peer learning across states and across communities was a successful strategy under the NRLP and will also continue to be used in this project.

Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Livelihoods Mission (NRLM)

• Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana - National Livelihoods Mission (NRLM) was launched by the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD), Government of India in 2011.
• The Mission aims at creating efficient and effective institutional platforms of the rural poor enabling them to increase household income through sustainable livelihood enhancements and improved access to financial services.
• Salient features
  • DAY-NRLM lays special emphasis on targeting the poorest of the poor and the most vulnerable communities and their financial inclusion.
  • Innovative projects are to be undertaken under NRETP to pilot alternate channels of financial inclusion, creating value chains around rural products, introduce innovative models in livelihoods promotion and access to finance and scale-up initiatives on digital finance and livelihoods interventions.
  • DAY-NRLM provides for mutually beneficial working relationship and formal platforms for consultations between Panchayati Raj Institutions (PRIs) and Community Based Organizations(CBOs).
  • NRLM has also developed activity map to facilitate convergence in different areas of interventions where NRLM institutions and PRIs could work together which has been disseminated to all state Rural Livelihood Missions.
• Benefits
  • The technical assistance provided by NRETP and the higher level interventions facilitated by the project
  • enhances the livelihoods promotion and access to finance, and
  • scales-up initiatives on digital finance and livelihood interventions.
  • develops financial products using digital financial services to help small producer collectives scale-up and engage with the market.
  • gives technical assistance, skills building and investment support to strengthen women-owned and women-led producer collectives diversify into high value farm and non-farm commodities such as commercial crops and livestock products, and fisheries.