MoRD & MSDE Sign MoU to Empower Rural Women SHGs with Skilling, Entrepreneurship & Market Access.

MOUs and Agreement

On 25 June 2025, the Ministry of Rural Development (MoRD) and the Ministry of Skill Development & Entrepreneurship (MSDE) signed a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) at Krishi Bhawan in New Delhi. The agreement aims to skilling, empower, and boost entrepreneurship among rural women Self‑Help Groups (SHGs) under DAY‑NRLM and the Lakhpati Didi mission.


      - MoRD Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and MoS (Skills) Jayant Chaudhary endorsed the MoU, aligned with Viksit Bharat@2047 and Lakhpati Didi targets. The partnership seeks to skill and empower three crore SHG women across rural India through targeted training and entrepreneurial support.

      - The MoU mandates customised skilling modules for SHG women in emerging sectors—digital, financial literacy, compliance, and market access. Trainings will be delivered via institutions like Jan Shikshan Sansthans, RSETIs, NIESBUD, and NSTIs, with certification backed by the Skill India Digital Hub.

      - Designed to foster viable rural enterprises, the initiative supports SHGs in agri and non-agri domains. Joint livelihood fairs, awareness campaigns, mentorship programmes, and quarterly reviews by a Joint Committee are central to its rollout.

Main Point :-   (i) The MoU creates institutional convergence—MoRD’s DAY-NRLM grassroots network and MSDE’s capacity development ecosystem—bringing both ministries into a synchronized skilling-entrepreneurship delivery model. This establishes a cohesive “last-mile” empowerment system.

      (ii) Valid for three years, the MoU establishes a Joint Review Committee for quarterly oversight. MoRD Secretary Shailesh Kumar Singh and MSDE Secretary Atul Kumar Tiwari, along with officials, will lead implementation, ensuring timely progress and accountability.

(iii) With over 10 crore women across 91 lakh SHGs already mobilised under DAY-NRLM, Minister Chouhan noted that rural women are driving change. This capacity building is essential to transform socio-economic paradigms and reach goals like ‘Millionaire Didis’ in future phases.
About MSDE

Minister : Jayant Chaudhary
Headquarters: New Delhi
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