Barli Institute for Development

Indore, India

Since 1985, Barli Institute has provided educational and empowerment programming to young, rural women. Barli offers a six-month residential training program with curricula on literacy, vocational skills, and community development.

Barli's graduates become agents of transformation in their communities, leading social and economic development. Establishing businesses that promote local economic development, sharing their knowledge of literacy and health, and challenging established gender norms.

To-date, Barli has trained over 15,000 women from 840 villages, impacting and improving the lives of thousands more.

Barli is recognized by UNESCO as one of the top 100 education projects in developing countries.

Program Components:

Vocational Skill Development

Cutting and Tailoring program
Skill development for establishing financial independence
Certificate of completion allows them to apply for small business loans to establish their own tailoring shops
At the end of the program, students can appear in the Cutting & Tailoring examination conducted by the National Institute of Open Schooling (NIOS), an institution under the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India.
94% of students contribute to their families income
60% of graduates establish their own businesses

Program Components

Education

10-15% of students arrive illiterate
100% pass the national literacy exam after the 6 month training.
The trainees learn about health and hygiene, women’s rights, conflict resolution, and community service.
UNEP conferred the Barli Institute with the Global 500 Roll of Honour for outstanding environmental achievements for helping to eradicate Guinea worm by working in 302 villages of Jhabua district. This award was presented in the The Earth Summit held at Rio De Janiero in 1992.

Program Components:

Sustainable Development

The trainees learn about organic farming, solar cooking, health and hygiene, women’s rights, conflict resolution, and community service.

The use of solar cookers offers a variety of social, health, and environmental benefits:

Reduced use of wood: Saves 150 trees per month at Barli
Method of drying herbs for traditional remedies
Solar drying of surplus promotes food security
More involvement of men in cooking
Increased safety

What we do

Provide funding for program and training costs, operational expenses, scholarships, and teacher training
Every 1$ invested in education yields $10 in economic growth