New Delhi, Feb 5 (NationPress) A remarkable 2.94 crore women members of self-help groups (SHGs) from rural regions have received training in various facets of financial inclusion, including banking services, during the initial nine months of the fiscal year 2025-26, up until December, as reported in Parliament on Wednesday.

In order to raise awareness about financial products and services in rural communities, the National Livelihood Mission has launched comprehensive Financial Literacy initiatives through trained Financial Literacy Community Resource Persons (FL-CRPs).

To date, 56,727 women SHG members have been trained and designated as FL-CRPs throughout the nation, as stated by the Minister for Home and Cooperation, Amit Shah, in a written response to the Rajya Sabha.

These FL-CRPs conduct ongoing training and awareness sessions at the community level, focusing on various elements of financial inclusion, such as the utilization of banking services, savings, credit, digital financial transactions, insurance, and pensions.

Their involvement aims to enhance financial behavior, strengthen access to formal financial services, and facilitate informed decision-making within households, the minister elaborated.

The National Cooperation Policy 2025 emphasizes the need for inclusive participation of women in cooperatives, with the goal of empowering them through legal recognition, supportive policies, digital advancements, financial access, and sectoral growth.

This policy positions cooperatives as instruments for social equity and economic development, prioritizing women as key stakeholders. It also specifies sector-specific cooperatives for women, including those in dairy, handicrafts, food processing, textiles, and community services.

To advance this policy, the Ministry of Cooperation, in collaboration with various central agencies such as the National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development, National Cooperative Development Corporation (NCDC), and the National Council for Cooperative Training (NCCT), alongside the Ministry of Rural Development, has initiated several programs to strengthen cooperatives and empower women through the cooperative movement, the minister further stated.

The SHGs, as part of the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojna National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM), are informal groups managed and owned by women members. Though they are not registered under any formal regulations, the Cluster Level Federations (CLFs) of these SHGs are registered under the Cooperative Act.

So far, 10,381 CLFs have been officially registered under the State Cooperative Act, the Multi-Cooperative Act, or the Mutually Aided Cooperative Act across the nation.

Moreover, the NCDC plans and supports programs for women relating to production, processing, marketing, storage, supply chain, export, and import of agricultural products, food items, industrial goods, livestock, and services such as tourism, rural housing, renewable energy, banking, healthcare, and education, among others, based on cooperative principles and by providing financial support.

Since 2021, the NCCT has trained 3,12,006 women participants through both long-term and short-term programs aimed at developing leadership, financial literacy, governance, and managerial skills, thus boosting women’s involvement in cooperative management, the minister concluded.