"We may be poor, but we are so many. Why don't we start a bank of our own ? Our own women's bank, where we are treated with the respect and service that we deserve."
- Chandaben, old clothes seller,
Founder - member, SEWA Bank
"How many times do we need to prove that poor women are bankable?"
- Jayshree Vyas, M.D., SEWA Bank
About Us - Mission
Objectives of SEWA Bank
The first major development effort of SEWA, the SEWA Co-operative Bank embodies a well-thought out concept to serve poor, self-employed women. It aims at providing an integrated set of banking services which make it a multi-service organisation that has deviated from the general pattern of co-operative banks.
The objectives of SEWA Bank, which are an outcome of practical experience are :
Providing facilities for savings and fixed deposit accounts, thus, inculcating thrift in the women, managing their savings and ensuring safe custody of the cash the women receive as loans.
Providing credit to further the productive, economic and income-generating activities of the poor and self-employed.
Providing integrated insurance services covering death, sickness and asset loss – as a form of social security protection to informal sector women workers.
Extending technical and management assistance in production, storage, procuring, designing and sale of goods and services. This includes services to buy raw materials, equipment, tools and implements establishing direct links with industries, wholesaler and producers from where the borrowers buy rags, scrap iron and wood, vessels, bamboo, yarn, vegetables and waste paper; guidance in marketing their goods; accounting services to members individually and to women's groups.
Providing facilities to rescue their jewellery from pawn-brokers and private money-lenders and giving loans against jewellery.
Adopting procedures and designing schemes suitable to poor self-employed women, like collecting daily savings from their places of business or houses, or providing saving boxes and giving training and assistance in understanding banking procedures.
SEWA Bank – Women's Lifelong Friend
The experience of SEWA Bank shows that women need finances for different purposes throughout their life. These needs are personal needs as well as business needs, short term, medium term and long term needs. They may also be classified as consumption and production needs. SEWA Bank's objective is to act as a life-time friend of its clients and not as a short term provider of funds. Hence it tries to design its services, products and delivery mechanisms as per the needs of its women clients.
