VIJAYAWADA: In a landmark move to strengthen women’s empowerment and tackle urban poverty, Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu unveiled a series of initiatives under the Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas (MEPMA) and reviewed the progress of the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP) at a high-level meeting at the Andhra Pradesh Secretariat.
Focusing on transforming women in Self-Help Groups (SHGs) into entrepreneurs, Naidu emphasised financial independence through innovative programmes, digital tools, and strong marketing strategies. Citing the success of the Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas (DWCRA) programme, he noted that women’s collectives have saved Rs 20,739 crore and accessed double that amount through bank linkages, maintaining a 99% loan repayment rate.
Drawing parallels with the IT sector’s global success, Naidu called for converting DWCRA women into industrialists. He suggested modern outlets modelled on global brands like Starbucks to promote products such as Araku coffee, millets, moringa, and bamboo-based items, and encouraged new ventures including seaweed culture, drone operations, and mobile food carts.
The CM launched eight MEPMA initiatives supporting the Rs 1 Lakh Women Entrepreneurs Programme’, including the MEPMA-Mana Mitra App for virtual training, the Pragnya Virtual Training Academy for digital and financial literacy, and the AVANEE Branding Manual to promote SHG products online.
He also released several publications highlighting MEPMA’s activities and presented a Rs 1.25 crore cheque to Madhuri under the PMFME scheme to expand her dairy unit.
Naidu proposed integrating DWCRA and MEPMA under a unified framework to streamline operations and utilise the expertise within SHGs.