SBS partners with the Tata Institute of Social Sciences to support entrepreneurial ecosystems in rural India
The Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship at Strathclyde Business School is partnering with the Centre for Social Entrepreneurship of Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), Mumbai, India to support entrepreneurial ecosystems in rural India. The project is funded by the British Council through its Going Global Partnerships: Industry-Academia Collaborative Grant 2022-23.
A substantial population of India resides in rural areas with little exposure to entrepreneurship. This programme aims to bridge this gap by building the capacity of youth from rural and remote geographies to create and grow entrepreneurial ventures around grassroots innovations.
Strathclyde Business School with its expertise in Entrepreneurship-For-All and social entrepreneurship will support curriculum development. Tata Institute of Social Sciences, Mumbai, India through its incubation centre, TISS Incube Foundation, has strong networks in rural India and grassroots enterprise development capabilities to engage in capacity-building activities. MyLab Discovery Solutions Private Limited, Pune, India will support the participating youth with technology mentoring through its strong pool of highly qualified technologists and innovators.
This project will focus on two regions of rural India to start with – namely rural areas of Pandharpur in Maharashtra and rural areas of Durgapur in West Bengal.
Sreevas Sahasranamam, associate professor at the Hunter Centre for Entrepreneurship, and lead of this project said, “We are looking to engage with local entrepreneurship support organisations such as Atal Community Innovation Centres to deliver this project. We aim to build local capacity and develop a train-the-trainer model in rural communities that will allow the ecosystem to self-sustain and grow."
The project also has a strong UK-India knowledge exchange component. Strathclyde will be hosting a round table discussion on the topic ‘Building entrepreneurial ecosystems in rural markets’ in mid-2023 which will see the participation of experts from both India and the UK. In late 2023, TISS will be hosting a workshop to disseminate learnings from the initiative.
Satyajit Majumdar, Professor and Dean, School of Management and Labour Studies, TISS and co-lead of this project commented, “This is going to be a great opportunity to not only exchange ideas but also to implement for lasting impact. The Programme would showcase sustainable practices of the communities before the audience in the UK.”
Published: 29 March 2023
