Dear Friends
Over the years, BISWA has endeavoured to adhere to the principles of transparency and accountability. Undeterred by malicious campaigns to tarnish our image, all of us at BISWA are set to address challenges of extreme poverty and sustainable development in India. I must thank all of you and expect your comments and suggestions to guide us in the years to come as usual. As you all know
the income gap between the 'haves' and 'have nots' in India continues to be staggering. While the per capita income of the 'well to do' is comparable with the developed and rich countries, the poor still survive on Less than 2 dollars a day. This sharp contrast between the developed India and the underdeveloped Bharat is manifesting itself in social unrest that threatens the very unity and sovereignty of the country. The underlying cause of the social unrest is denial of access and right to dignified Living for an overwhelming majority of poor Indians. Ever since its inception, BISWA has continuously endeavoured to work for economic and social inclusion of the poor and excluded. Our focus has been women as they bear the major burden of poverty, and till recently were excluded from the development planning and required resource allocation processes. Through empowerment and financial inclusion women have demonstrated that they are the most effective catalysts of social change and sustainable development. This is a fact that has been demonstrated by over one million women members of the BISWA family, year after year. BISWA as an institution and me as its torchbearer have remained committed to our vision of bringing dignity to the poor and excluded women. Our mission of '1 million jobs, 2 million toilets, 3 million water tap connections and 10 million trees by 2015' is an article of faith for the entire BISWA family and each one of us is determined to accomplish it. The uncertainty and troubles in the Micro Finance Sector has been a setback. The required policy interventions were long overdue thus impacting our operations. We have accordingly re-organised and gathered our strengths around social thematic areas viz. Livelihood, Water and Sanitation, Health and Education, Relief and Rehabilitation, and Natural Resources Management as a response to Climate Change. The strategy adopted is to create national level advocacy on these
matters and attract multiple funding sources to multiply our actions and scale up the interventions. Our strategic collaborations with national and state government and
partnerships with various agencies including corporate bodies and donors remain healthy and effective in delivering public goods to poor. In years to come, we will further expand and strengthen these relationships by forging long-term collaborations with them.
