Swayam
Shakti
Swayam Shakti, meaning self-empowerment, creates accessible livelihood opportunities for women from low-income urban, rural and tribal communities.
The program supports women to build practical skills, participate in local production networks and earn in ways that work around their everyday realities.
More than a skilling initiative, Swayam Shakti is about creating pathways to income, confidence and greater agency, enabling women to build futures shaped by their abilities and aspirations.
The Challenge
Many women have the ability and aspiration to earn but limited access to opportunities that fit the realities of their lives. Distance, fixed working hours, household and caregiving responsibilities, limited formal education and restricted mobility can place mainstream training and employment out of reach.
The barrier is often the format of the opportunity, not a lack of ability.
Training alone is also not enough. Without access to production opportunities, continued mentoring and markets, a newly acquired skill may never translate into meaningful income.
Our Approach
Swayam Shakti brings craft based livelihood opportunities closer to women.
We create community-based training and production models that offer flexible hours, local access and the option to work from home.
Women build practical craft and production skills while receiving support in product development, quality, pricing, financial literacy and health awareness.
The program connects training with regular production and market opportunities, helping women move from learning a skill to earning through it.
Swayam Shakti works around the realities of women’s lives, helping them earn, grow in confidence and have a stronger say at home and in their communities.
Women’s Livelihood Centre in Hyderabad
What began in 2018 with 30 women training in a small garage space in Vattepally has grown into Craftizen’s longest-running community livelihood centre.
Over 500 women have since been trained, with 400+ earning income across tailoring, embroidery, crochet, box-making and plastic upcycling, alongside financial literacy and health sessions.
Located within the neighbourhood it serves, the centre offers women flexible, accessible pathways to learn skills, participate in production and earn close to home.
Today, it is a shared space for training, work and collective growth bringing women together and connecting their skills to real orders and market opportunities.
Fatima’s Story
“She began by learning to thread a needle. She currently leads Quality at the centre.”
Fatima had been forced to leave school several years earlier because of her family’s financial circumstances. As a young adult, her opportunities were also limited by restrictions on travelling outside the neighbourhood until the Swayam Shakti Livelihood Centre opened just a few steps from her home in Vattepally, making it possible for her to join in 2018.
When Fatima first arrived, she had never threaded a needle. With training, practice and determination, she became a skilled artisan across tailoring, crochet and plastic upcycling. Her attention to detail and ability to coordinate large orders soon made her a trusted leader at the centre.
Today, Fatima is a full-time member of the Craftizen team and serves as the centre’s Quality Supervisor, overseeing production quality and timely delivery. She also encourages other women in her community to build skills, confidence and greater economic independence.
Let’s create pathways to dignified livelihoods for women.
Whether you are a corporate, funding organisation, NGO or institution, collaborate with Craftizen to help underserved in rural and urban women build skills, earn incomes and strengthen community-led enterprises.