Mission Shakti & NULM to boost women-led urban livelihoods

Bhubaneswar, Dec 3 (UNI) Focusing on a stronger and more cohesive ecosystem for women-led urban livelihoods, the Odisha Government on Wednesday decided to converge Mission Shakti and the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM)
The convergence of Mission Shakti and the National Urban Livelihoods Mission (NULM) was convened under the chairmanship of Principal Secretary, Housing & Urban Development Department, Usha Padhee.

The convergence of Mission Shakti and NULM will open new avenues for sustainable, women-led economic growth, Padhee said.
She underscored the importance of a seamless institutional architecture for advancing women’s economic empowerment across urban Odisha.
“Our aim is to ensure that women’s collectives in cities gain improved access to skills, markets, credit and entrepreneurship opportunities,” Padhee stated.

Key deliberations included streamlining coordination between SHGs, ALFs and CLFs, designing a shared skilling and enterprise development framework, and strengthening market linkages through urban haats, branding support, e-commerce platforms and government procurement.

Enhancing financial inclusion and expanding credit access for scaling women-led microenterprises were also prioritised.

The convergence roadmap positions Mission Shakti SHGs as central partners in Odisha’s urban transformation.

Joint action plans by the H&UD and Mission Shakti Departments will be rolled out shortly to operationalise the collaborative initiatives, Padhee said.