SHILLONG: A state level workshop on financial capability of rural low-income households was organized recently by the Meghalaya Institute of Entrepreneurship (MIE) under the aegis of the Meghalaya Basin Development and Livelihood Improvement Programme. Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) GmbH was the technical partner for the workshop was the.
The objective of the workshop was to create awareness on the concept of financial capability for low income households and highlight its relevance for India, especially Meghalaya. The workshop was attended by key officials and representatives from various government departments, banks, Reserve Bank of India, NABARD, insurance companies, NGOs and microfinance institutions.
In his opening address, Kenneth M Pala, Senior Technical Expert and Regional Coordinator of the GIZ Climate Change Adaptation Programme in the North Eastern Region lauded Meghalaya for inviting GIZ to further contribute to the State’s initiative of addressing financial capability of the rural households. He stressed on the need to enhance the financial capability of the numerous enterprise groups as a means to uplift their economic well being.
KS Kropha, Additional Chief Secretary who was the chief guest for the workshop, highlighted the need to understand the Meghalaya context as the financial requirements of households are different and hence the financial products and services need to be designed accordingly.
During the day, the team from GIZ – NABARD Rural Financial Institutions Programme headed by Jonna Bickel along with the GIZ Regional Office Shillong, presented the concept of effective financial inclusion through focus on financial capability of households.
It may be mentioned that financial capability is the ensemble of abilities related to making informed financial choices, managing money effectively and using financial services for one’s own benefit.
It closes the gap between financial access or financial inclusion and financial impact.