HYDERABAD: To empower local farming communities and self-help groups (SHGs) in the State by providing pan-India market access to more than 400 million customers on its platform, Flipkart has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Society for Elimination of Rural Poverty (SERP), a Government of Telangana initiative to facilitate social mobilisation of poor rural women.
As part of this collaboration, Flipkart, a Bengaluru-based e-commerce company, will directly source premium quality pulses, millets and spices from local farmers, contributing to improved income and business growth. With this partnership, Flipkart aims to generate a business growth of `500 crore.
Flipkart will engage with these communities through virtual and on-ground training and capacity-building initiatives to provide them with an understanding of the quality, pricing, and licenses required to be a part of the Farmer Producer Organisation (FPO) ecosystem. The SERP will extend support with infrastructure and necessary approvals to take this partnership forward.
Errabelli Dayakar Rao, Panchayat Raj, Rural Development and Rural Water Supply Minister, says that this first-of-its-kind MoU signed in the country with a credible e-commerce giant such as Flipkart is another milestone contributing to the progress of Telangana.
“There are 4,36,000 SHGs consisting of 46 lakhs members in the State. We wish to support all of them, especially women, for whom we have a target to provide loans of `500 crore this year. We believe that the SHGs will work hard and use these initiatives to accelerate their development and to grow their businesses,” Dayakar Rao adds.
Sandeep Kumar Sultania, Secretary, Panchayat Raj & Rural Development, says products manufactured by farmers and SHGs will be able to reach international markets due to this collaboration. “The partnership between Flipkart and SERP will enhance the income of our farmers,” he adds. “The training, skill development and focus on product standardisation will ensure the products are not limited to B2B partners only but scale to reach customers directly. This partnership will give good recognition to the State FPOs, women and SHGs in a big way in the years to come,” he mentions.
PAN-INDIA PRESENCE
The collaboration will help farmers and SHGs sell their produce to pan-India and international consumers
Business growth of `500 crore expected by Flipkart
Flipkart will engage with these communities through virtual and on-ground training and capacity-building initiatives
SERP will extend support with infrastructure and necessary approvals