A Study of SHG as a Model of Social Entrepreneurship in Mayurbhanj District, Odisha

Abstract

“Social entrepreneurship” refers to the process of combining resources and opportunity to address social problems. In order to combat poverty, marginalization, environmental degradation and the accompanying loss of personal integrity, social entrepreneurs focus on altering the institutions and behaviors that support these issues. They do this by creating business that is either for-profit or non-profit, but in both cases, their principal objective is to achieve long-lasting systemic change. Self Help Group (SHG) is an example of a strategy that tries to promote social entrepreneurship in rural area. SHGs encourage its members and assist social entrepreneurs in overcoming obstacles. SHG plays a crucial role in helping impoverished women to achieve a stable lifestyle. It is steadily proving to be among the most effective ways to fight poverty in rural India. Thus, there is no question that SHGs provide a forum for the promotion of social entrepreneurs. SHGs thus undoubtedly serve as a platform for the promotion of social entrepreneurs. In this light, the researcher has made an effort to investigate the elements that motivate women to join SHGs as a kind of social entrepreneurship in Myurbhanj district of Odisha. Discriminant analysis has been used to find out the influencing factors affecting women to get associated with SHG as means of social entrepreneurship. The study identified “Employment generation”, “Gender Inequality” and “Social value creation” as the factors influencing women to be associated with SHG.