Dear Friends & Colleagues,

Enterprising: ‘willingness to try new and unusual ways of doing things.’

It’s 2022 and the world has changed. And with it, so have we. We have all pivoted towards a new way of doing things – we’ve gone digital like never before; we’ve diversified and taken on new responsibilities; we’ve been forced to become more and more enterprising as seemingly insurmountable hurdles continue to be thrown in our way.And in a pandemic context, it has literally been ‘sink or swim.’ We have all watched in horror as the achievements of the last few decades in reducing poverty have been obliterated - millions lost their livelihoods and were thrust back into poverty. As a result, 2021 saw us ‘double up’ our work to support our communities – continuing with existing programs, whilst rolling out new ones to tackle COVID-19 and its aftermath. We went the extra mile to bolster ‘livelihoods’ as it became all the more critical in these COVID times – helping kick-start innumerable micro-enterprises, both on and off-farm. We watched with pride as our people’s institutions rose to the occasion and led the charge on the ground. And with the need becoming all the greater, we forged more partnerships to expand our work and footprint.So, with a new year ahead of us, what can, and what should, we as development sector professionals, do to enable both people and communities to thrive?We are of the firm belief that we should steel ourselves in our determination to nurture the ‘enterprising spirit’ within our rural communities, among our farmers, women and youth. For with it, we have seen people go far. We’ve seen them prosper, and indeed, thrive. Fostering the ‘enterprising spirit’ among us all can pay real dividends – not only to individuals and their families. But to the communities in which they live and work. The states they call home and importantly, the entire nation. Let us nurture the KUSH SARDAR’S of the country – who cut his teeth as a child laborer on a dairy farm in Farraka, West Bengal, but took all he learned there and channeled it into developing his own milk business. Today he is known as the ‘progressive milkman’ of the district, has a herd of his own cows, and has developed a complete milk supply chain in the locality. Now that’s what we call ‘enterprising!’

May we empower the NENUDI DEVI’s of the world – a single mother from Balada Village Rajasthan, who took a barren patch of land and built a flourishing ‘ber wadi’ with 250 trees – risking everything she owned to install drip irrigation to get the wadi up and running. Earning 1.75 lakh per annum, she and her daughter are the epitome of ‘enterprising’.

In 2022, let's encourage people’s institutions like the BHU AMRIT FARMER PRODUCER COMPANY from Bhagwanpur, Uttarakhand, who took a gamble by venturing into organic farming and food processing – developing a line of superior organic food products that are selling like ‘hotcakes’ on platforms like Amazon and Flipkart, and helping farmer members value add their earnings.

For India to pull itself out of the glut of the pandemic, and for people to rise above the devastation it has caused along the way, we must all become more ‘enterprising’ in everything we do. Livelihoods, families, and lives depend upon it. Indians have renowned the world over for their enterprising nature, so let us capitalize upon that for the future.It’s what we at Ambuja Foundation vow to pursue with vigor, and we encourage you to join us … may we continue to work together in generating prosperity on the ground, in rural communities, where it is needed the most.

- Pearl Tiwari

Director & CEO, Ambuja Foundation