Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana(MKSP)

News:Union Minister of Agriculture and Farmers has informed Lok Sabha about the Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana(MKSP).

Facts:

About Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana(MKSP):

• Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana (MKSP) is a sub component of the National Rural Livelihood Mission(NRLM).
• The primary objective of the scheme is to empower women in agriculture by making systematic investments to enhance their participation and productivity, as also create and sustain agriculture based livelihoods of rural women.
• The Department of Rural Development, Ministry of Rural Development is implementing the scheme.

Objectives of MKSP:

• To enhance the productive participation of women in agriculture;
• To create sustainable agricultural livelihood opportunities for women in agriculture;
• To improve the skills and capabilities of women in agriculture to support farm and non-farm-based activities;
• To ensure food and nutrition security at the household and the community level;
• To enable women to have better access to inputs and services of the government and other agencies;
• To enhance the managerial capacities of women in agriculture for better management of biodiversity;
• To improve the capacities of women in agriculture to access the resources of other institutions and schemes within a convergence framework.

Additional information:

About Women in Agriculture:

• Rural women form the most productive workforce in the economy of the majority of the developing nations including India. 
• Agriculture which is the single largest production endeavour in India, contributing to 16% of the GDP is increasingly becoming a female activity. 
• Agriculture sector employs 80% of all economically active women which they comprise of 33% of the agricultural labour force and 48% of self employed farmers.
• However,women in Agriculture are generally not able to access extension services and production assets like seeds, water, credit, subsidies among others.
• Hence,the MKSP scheme aims to empower women in agriculture by making systematic investments to enhance their participation and productivity, as also to create and sustain their agriculture-based livelihoods.