30,000 Women and Young People to Get a Boost from Amazon's New Initiative

Amazon India has launched a three-year program called “Entrepreneurship for Enablement” aimed at helping 30,000 women and young people learn how to start their own businesses and manage finances. This program is in partnership with ACCESS Development Services, an organization focused on sustainable livelihoods. The initiative, co-created and funded by Amazon, will take place in Haryana, Uttar Pradesh, and Maharashtra. A launch event on March 20, 2025, in Gurugram included important stakeholders who discussed the entrepreneurial landscape. 

The program specializes in women's entrepreneurship and aims to offer business development training and support to 3,000 entrepreneurs through mentorship programs. It will also provide digital literacy training, focusing on smartphone use for 24,000 participants, and digital payment training for 22,000 individuals.

The initiative seeks to help establish 1,200 new businesses, with 80% expected to reach INR 1 lakh in annual revenue by their third year. It plans to develop 10 model businesses, with half led by women, generating INR 10 to 25 lakhs in annual turnover and creating new jobs. Entrepreneurs will have opportunities to sell both online and offline. Mr. Vipin Sharma, CEO of ACCESS Development Services, highlighted the importance of empowering women entrepreneurs to enhance India's economic growth and achieve its $5 trillion goal.

Dr. Karuna Shankar Pande, Vice President of Amazon Logistics India, emphasized that entrepreneurship drives economic growth. The initiative aims to empower women and young people with resources and skills to create sustainable businesses, enhance India’s entrepreneurial ecosystem, and promote individual self-reliance by 2027. The project will focus on knowledge building and enterprise development across five to eight village clusters in each state.

In Haryana, the program will target clusters in Farukhnagar and Taoru, encouraging growth in agricultural enterprises and handicrafts. In Uttar Pradesh, it will focus on Bhaukapur in Lucknow and Bajhera in Unnao, supporting traditional handicrafts and retail businesses. In Maharashtra, the focus will be on the Bhiwandi area, emphasizing traditional handicrafts and service-oriented businesses. Each geographic area will cater to local entrepreneurial opportunities while leveraging existing skills.

Since 2014, Amazon India has been committed to addressing social needs, including education, livelihoods, and health, by collaborating with NGOs and community stakeholders to create meaningful, lasting impact.