SIDBI has launched several initiatives to empower women entrepreneurs across India through its Mission Swavalamban, which blends financial support with capacity building, mentoring, and market access. One of its key schemes is the ARJANA loan facility, exclusively for MSMEs with at least 51% women ownership, offering concessional finance with reduced guarantee fees, minimal processing charges, and no prepayment penalties. SIDBI also runs the Swavalamban Silai Homepreneur Program in partnership with Usha International, setting up Silai Schools that provide residential training in stitching, machine maintenance, entrepreneurship, and life skills, enabling women to start their own home-based tailoring businesses. To promote market access, SIDBI organizes Swavalamban Bazaar+ fairs that showcase women-led enterprises and link them to design, credit, and marketing resources. The SAFAL initiative delivers financial literacy, credit, and market linkages to women in adopted villages, while the SWAS program focuses on empowering women in the Sundarbans through training in handicrafts and food processing. Additionally, the Bank Sakhi program trains women to provide banking and digital financial services in rural areas. SIDBI also promotes digital inclusion through webinar series in collaboration with COWE, helping women understand platforms like Stand-Up India, GeM, and TReDS. It supports microfinance through the SIDBI Foundation for Microcredit and extends credit guarantees under CGTMSE, which includes enhanced coverage and reduced fees for women entrepreneurs. State-level partnerships, like with AMFI in West Bengal, further strengthen credit and market access for thousands of women-led businesses. All these efforts are unified under SIDBI’s 4S + Sangam framework—Sampark, Samwad, Suraksha, Sampreshan, and Sangam—designed to create a comprehensive and sustainable ecosystem for women entrepreneurship in India.

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