Preamble

In villages, most of the males are the breadwinners of the family, whether professionals or daily-wage workers. Half of the women spend their time on household work, with little opportunity to contribute economically to their family.

The remaining women who do work — as daily wage labourers, domestic help, or construction workers — earn very little, often not enough to cover even food for their families. Many households struggle without adequate income, especially where a husband's earnings are unreliable.

In this difficult situation, women often have no option but to borrow from informal lenders at high interest, trapping them in cycles of debt and, in the worst cases, despair.

READ's founder recognised the need to improve women's status through organised, collective action. In 2000, READ began forming women's self-help groups focused on savings and credit — more than 1,000 groups have since been formed and trained in short-term courses and skill-building.

Through these groups, READ has provided small loans to help women start their own businesses, addressing needs from daily expenses to education, medical care and housing — supported over the years by banking partners including HDFC (2006–2010), SBI (2009–2011), SHEPHERD (2011–2014), and ICICI Bank (2014–present).