Rural Women Entrepreneurship through Value Addition of Fish: A Case Study

Abstract

A gender perspective on post harvest fisheries is important because women are often the primary work force in these activities. One of the ways to mainstream them is by promoting entrepreneurship. There has been a shift in consumers demand towards convenience foods like ready-to-eat products and to tap this opportunity, it is necessary to build the capacity of fisherwomen by updating them with the latest technologies in value addition. The present paper discusses a case study on development of a model of rural women entrepreneurship through value addition of fish in Odisha. This involved occupational needs assessment, the study of market potential of products through consumer survey, popularisation of the value-added products, master trainers development, appropriate capacity building, input support, enabling procurement of licenses and market linkages. As a result of the gender inclusive interventions, a group of rural women ventured into the business of production and sale of value-added fish products successfully despite the trying period of the pandemic of COVID 19. Through the skill and knowledge upgradation and the required handholding, the project motivated the rural women enough to initiate small scale enterprise to further enhance their quality of living through increased income.