Social responsibility is an ethical theory that an entity, be it an organization has an obligation to act to benefit society at large. Social responsibility is a duty of every organization has perform so as to maintain a balance between the economy and the ecosystem. It’s our unshakeable belief that India will never achieve its true growth story until the rural sector of the country is empowered to make choices and transform their own lives. With this thought, we initiated. The AVNA Foundation with a mission to empower rural lives through a unique 360-degree development model which covers four key thematic areas namely Health & Nutrition, Education and Economic Development. Our aim is to ensure that this model can be replicated at scale across India and perhaps even the world.
OUR PROGRAMMES:
ON FARM PROGRAM -The focus here is on bringing more cultivable land under assured irrigation, thus enabling farmers to sow economically viable crops like vegetables in rabi season, and increasing productivity and survival percentage of existing and recently planted orchards. These initiatives are bolstered by exposure visits for new adoptees and imparting technical knowledge by agri domain experts which aids in augmenting income levels of farmers who are otherwise largely dependent on growing rainfed paddy in the kharif season.
OFF FARM PROGRAM-Off-farm activities include dairy, goat rearing, fishing and poultry. Dairy is introduced to develop an ecosystem around dairy farming and promote dairy as a sustainable livelihood option, which creates a steady revenue stream throughout the year for households. It also includes providing sustainability options to farmers like hydroponic fodder, azolla, mineral mixture, nutrition management and advisory services coupled with market linkages. Poultry is tailor made for the weaker sections of the community who are unable to adopt other economic development programmes. It provides a regular revenue and healthy protein source for the community. The focus here is on women SHGs and is helping in developing their entrepreneur skills. Goat rearing as a livelihood option is being adopted mainly by the tribal community, women lead households and poorest of poor sections of the society. AVNA Foundation has helped in introduction of improved breeds of goat, veterinary support and health advisory to strengthen and make this programme sustainable.
NON FARM PROGRAM-The non- farm activities include skills training to youths and their placement in formal employment and enterprise development. It aims at enhancing the skills of the unemployed youth, thus empowering them to be placed in better jobs with higher salaries. This helps in augmenting the income levels of the household and instills a sense of pride amongst rural youth. Supporting new entrepreneurs with adequate training, exposure visits and best practises for enterprise development is also a part of the non-farm programme.
MINDSET CHANGE- we provide extensive leadership training to principals and in-service training to youth and working women. In addition, we have setup a learning resource centre exclusively for children with their special needs.
FUTURE READY - we provide career counselling to prepare students and parents for future opportunities. Forming and strengthening of school management committees who are empowered to act upon any issues pertaining to their school management and ensure corrective action through appropriate mechanisms.