The Chanpatia Block in West Champaran in Bihar exemplifies the resilience in human spirit and enterprise. Upon the lockdown last March, more than 1.2 lakh migrants rushed back to the safety of their homes in this district alone. Skill mapping by the district administration showed the wealth of skills that they had brought back from the factories in Surat and Ludhiana, construction sites and telecom networks in the NCR and the like. Enthused, the District Administration mounted quick support by way of work sheds and credit linkages. Small enterprises mushroomed. The Chanpatia Block saw 27 start-ups employing more than 700 workers with deep appetite for more in the last one year. Such stories recur in all the 116 migrant-intensive districts of the country – YouTube videos showing ghost villages in Uttarakhand springing back to life are a treat to watch.

Revival and regeneration of MSMEs ravaged by the multifaceted impact of the pandemic are firmly on the policy agenda. Reportedly, 5 million MSMEs have benefitted in terms of immediate liquidity and credit needs from the USD 750 million MSME Emergency Response Programme. And more follow-up measures are underway towards the ambitious ‘MSME Competitiveness – A Post COVID Resilience and Recovery Programme’. But as is known, there are limitations to the outreach of formal credit and support mechanisms in so far as the nano or micro enterprises, particularly those in rural areas, are concerned. Many agriculture related enterprises such as farmer producer companies are excluded from the definition of MSMEs by definition or by engrained practices.

There is urgency with regard to women-owned micro-enterprises. Based on responses from 125 women entrepreneurs across 32 countries, the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women found that for nearly one in ten of the women entrepreneurs who responded, the pandemic has been the single greatest challenge they had ever faced. Some India-based surveys and studies exhibit similar findings. Small urban enterprises such as tailors, dressmakers, small shopkeepers and beauty parlours, which have been largely women-owned, were severely impacted upon lockdown. Women-led small enterprises in rural areas, on the other hand, have tended to be more resilient. But these too have suffered with women facing the burden of increased unpaid care work and cash flow shortages.

Thus, a comprehensive relook at the policy and programme measures is required to ensure that initiatives as in Chanpatia and villages in Uttarakhand do not remain bubbles but begin to support a structural shift to local livelihoods, particularly in rural and rurban locations. UNDP’s own scoping study across selected migrant intensive districts showed that a majority of the respondents chose not to migrate after easing of restrictions. Many other studies have reached similar conclusions.

So what might such an enabling policy shift entail? First and foremost, is the need for a fresh outlook on the concept of credit worthiness and collateral. For small business loans, the skill base of a potential entrepreneur could well substitute for collateral in the form of physical or financial assets. Such an approach is also likely to hedge the risks for skilled workers transitioning into small enterprise owners. Chanpatia gives hope of genuine success along these lines. Going further, a robust equity support programme for small skill-based entrepreneurs is required.

Second, there is need for internalizing many of the rural value chain segments as enterprises. Considering that women are pre-dominant in these, such measures will be particularly important for reversing the highly dismal trend in female workforce participation rates. In this context, one could quote recent innovations by UNDP in the form of introducing Mini-MBA modules for the educated second generation from the families of farmers and artisans, or training in the new job role of Women Sourcing Manager in partnership with organized supply chain actors.

Third, we need to develop medium to long-term vision and engagement in the ‘education to work’ transition process. Together with the Institute of Human Development, UNDP has begun to explore an education to work transition index on the lines of the Human Development Index. It suggests scope for further strengthening of the education to work transition process in states where the youth bulge is yet unfolding. The way forward could be active inculcation of enterprise-oriented mindset and its early exposure among the youth in their educational journey. This would form the core of revamped education to work transition pathways which will address the decent livelihoods agenda for India’s massive youth population.

The short point is that the post-pandemic agenda for enterprise promotion at the grassroots calls for a new and progressive vision of skill-based enterprises, of rural value chains as enterprises, and the women who are dominant in these as entrepreneurs. Seen in this light, the migrant intensive districts could generate more hope, enthusiasm, and action. Placing the above process on a healthy and sustainable path requires an innovative approach towards the education to work transition pathways.

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Views expressed above are the author's own.

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