Small Grants Programme (SGP)

Small Grants Programme (SGP) seeks to support initiatives, which demonstrate community-based innovative, gender sensitive, participatory approaches and lessons learned from other development projects that lead to reduce threats to the local and global environment. The initiative is funded by the United Nation Development Program (UNDP), Global Environment Facility (GEF). It is being implemented by CEE as the National Host Institution (NHI) since September 2000. Eight projects have been completed successfully. Gram Nidhi was one of the major project carried out under SGP in Rajasthan. In partnership with five grassroots organization Paryatna Samati, Kotra Adivasi Sansthan, Sangam Sansthan, Sahyog Sansthan and Samarthak Samati, CEE had replicated the experience of Gram Nidhi project implemented with world bank’s market place grant in Jasdan(Gujarat) .The project was supported by Rajasthan Mission on Skill and Livelihood (RMol) of the Government of Rajasthan. As a part of the project Gram Nidhi committee had been set up comprising representative from NGOs and communities. These committees provides the vision to the project in terms facilitating entrepreneurship through sharing of experience and identifying capacity .The Gram Nidhi committee also manages the corpus of Rs. 14 lakhs created to provide loans to the entrepreneurs for acquiring capitals assets and working capitals .CEE had facilitated the programme through capacity building exercises incorporating experimental learning, economic analysis and viability of different enterprises, sharing and creating models of best practices, collaborating with various institutions and creating system for capacity building and management of loans. 50 enterprises based on live stock (Gir CO and Sirohi Coat), Poultry, Enterprises for collection of Jatropha seeds, processing of local grains for market and shops and other similar initiative were started in 2009.