The document describes a livelihood project started by Kaingkarya, a social service organization, to help women in the tsunami-affected Nochikuppam area of Tamil Nadu. The project formed a self-help group (SHG) called Ellaimman with 12 women members. With funding from Oxfam Trust, the SHG started a cashew processing business. While initially successful, the evaluator noted the need for the women members to take a more active role in record keeping and business operations rather than relying on one member's husband who was currently dominating aspects of running the business. Providing more training and helping the SHG access additional capital were also recommended to help ensure the long term sustainability and

1. PROJECT TITLE:
LIVELIHOODS FOR WOMEN
RECIPIENT ORGANIZATION: KAINGKARYA
PROJECT OBJECTIVE:
(a) General Objective: To help implement a rehabilitation and reconstruction
program encompassing livelihood and shelter, to address the midterm needs of the people
affected by the tsunami tidal wave in Tamilnadu.
(b) Specific Objective:Help 24 women in the tsunami affected area to raise their
standard of living and support their families through extra income and thereby to bring
socio economic change and the overall empowerment of the women, increased access to
food, children’s schooling, women’s mobility, confidence, recognition, respect, status and
participation in public sphere.
DESCRIPTION
Nochikuppam was one of the areas that was affected by the tsunami that struck the
shores of Chennai on the 26th
of Dec 06. The Government and various N.G.O’s started their
relief work in the severely affected areas. Nochikuppam was largely ignored because there
were only two casualties in that area. This made the people protest against the Government
as they felt they were not treated at par with other affected kuppams. At this juncture
Kaingkarya started immediate relief by giving 500 kg of rice and medicines.
Oxfam Trust in conjunction with Kaingkarya, a social service organization started in
1991 by Ms Kaveri Natrajan, the present Director of the organization in order to address the
unmet needs of the affected, especially women and children of Nochikuppam. The mode of
intervention was through the initiation of the following programs:-
 A new venture of Cashew Processing Unit.
 Project for sale of Fish and Prawn.
Cashew Processing Unit
A group of 12 women approached Kaingkarya to help
them form an SHG. These women wanted to venture into
some kind of a business as most were affected during
tsunami. Some women used to indulge in some petty
business such as running of petty shops or smalltime fish
vending. Post tsunami, most of the ladies lost their
investment and as such was not in a position to start off on
their own. Kaingkarya provided these women training in
saving and the concept of self-help groups. Accordingly, four
modules of SHG training were developed, with the view of
teaching communications skills and group dynamics. In
addition, the members were motivated to suggest any profitable business venture that they
could embark upon, to enhance their livelihood. The Ellaimman Self Help Group was formed
with the 12 women as members. After a lively discussion and debate, one of the members,

2. Indra’s suggestion of starting a cashew processing unit was welcomed by all and the group
decided to take Indra’s husband’s help to learn the details of the business. Thus Ellaimman
Self Help Group decided to commence this project and submitted a project proposal to
Kaingkarya for assistance.
Kaingkarya approached Oxfam Trust to accord support for the project, which it
accordingly sanctioned under the Livelihood for Women overhead. The contribution from the
various stakeholders were as under:-
 Total cost of the Project: Rs 64,200/-
 Contribution from SHG members: Rs 24,000/-
 Contribution from Oxfam Trust (CIDA): Rs 40,200/-
Comments/observations
Of the total budget of Rs 3,34,300/- allocated towards the
overhead livelihood for women, about Rs 40,200/- was
allocated towards the project for processing of Cashew, or
12.02% of the budget allocated for the overhead livelihood for
women. The evaluator met initially the Agency staff associated
with the project to obtain an overview of the same. The
evaluator interviewed the Director as well as the project
coordinators associated with the project in order to be able to
ascertain the various nuances of the project. The various
records, reports that were generated wrt the project was studied in great detail to obtain a
holistic picture of the evolution as well as the involvement of the NGO with the project.
Accordingly the following observations were made wrt the Agency:
 The NGO was chosen by the Project Officer (PO) based in Chennai. The PO
himself had worked with the organization in the past.
 The NGO has a good track record of implementing projects and generally enjoyed a
good reputation amongst the NGOs operating in Tamilnadu.
 A participatory approach was adopted while assessing the need of the stakeholders
in the present project.
 Adequate time was spent in imparting training to the women on the Concept of
SHG, though it did not from a part of the Oxfam program.
 Close interaction between the Agency staff and the stakeholders was observed.
 The procurement of machine for cashew drying was undertaken jointly by the
Agency and the stakeholders.
 The documentation of the entire process however could be recorded in more detail.
 The receipts for the various cash transactions were diligently maintained.
 Narrative reports though sketchy were submitted on completion of the objectives of
the project.
 In terms of sustainability for the project, it was observed by the evaluator that the
Agency was ready to be involved with the SHG to help them expand/diversify in
future.
 The Agency maintained a good rapport with the PO of Oxfam Trust.

3. INPUT (RESOURCES AND
ACTIVITIES)
EXPECTED RESULTS
(OUTPUT)
PERFORMANCE
INDICATORS
SHG
 Building to
accommodate
cashew-drying
machine.
 Labour of members
Kaingkarya
 Concept training on
SHG formation
 Facilitation of
grant/assistance
 Guidance
Oxfam Trust (CIDA)
 Financial Assistance
 Trained SHG
members
 Starting fish storage,
and marketing of
product.
 Augmented income of
Self Help Group
women
 Increased Confidence
to continue the
business
 70 kgs of cashew were
sold in the beginning
and now they have
confidence of earning
20,000 per month.
 Bank Account and
Cash book
transcations
 SHG records
 Empirical observation
of skills of women in
the process of
manufacturing,
marketing and
maintenance of
accounts.
Table 3.1
In addition to the above interview and content analysis of the secondary data that the
Agency had prepared, the evaluator then planned a focused group discussion with 12
members of the Elliamman SHG with an intention to gather empirical data through
observation as well as a transect walk/social survey of the kuppam, where the SHG members
lived. It was also important that the evaluator acquaint himself with the various nuances of the
project first hand by empirical observations. The following observations were made wrt the
SHG:-
 An innovative project that has been well conceived and implemented.
 The Elliamman SHG exists on ground.
 The women members belonged to a lower socio economic background.
 The SHG was equally represented where caste is concerned. The kuppam consists
of generally people from the MBCs, SC, and OBCs.
 The members were generally enthusiastic of the whole project.
 Record maintenance needs to be spruced up and the participation of the female
members is essential in the maintenance of the SHG’s records. This aspect needs a
special mention because, the evaluator observed that Indira, one of the members of
the SHG based on whose suggestion the Cashew processing project was started
has a husband who has been in this nature of business for a considerable point of
time. On interviewing, empirical observation as well as scrutiny of documents, it was
observed that the husband of Indira was playing a more dominant role where the
activity of the SHG was concerned. Case in point being, the individual himself has
taken upon him to procure raw Cashew from the wholesalers and it was observed

4. that no women members accompanied
him during the purchasing of the
commodity. All the records are
maintained by Indira/her husband leaving
no scope for the participation of other
women in this crucial exercise. At most
the other members are involved in the
packing of the processed cashew and
selling them. It was important to highlight
this crucial point because otherwise the entire project is at the risk of being
dominated by the husband and wife. This aspect attains more prominence when it is
seen that the machine is housed in a temporary structure erected by Indira and her
husband. It is therefore crucial that it be emphasized that the role of the lone male in
the SHG be reduced and the women members play a more proactive role so that
the project does not end up as a single-family show. This aspect was pointed out by
the evaluator to both the Agency as well as the SHG and both promised that the
same would be rectified as early as possible.
 More training/practice for the maintenance of the various records as well as ledgers
are needed to be imparted to the SHG members to build their confidence levels.
 Presently there is not much of capital available for the SHG to procure large
amounts of Cashew to be processed in order to be able to incur a decent profit that
could be channelized into activities other than the procurement of cashew.
 For additional capital, the SHG plans to approach a nationalized bank for loan.
 For the sanction of loan, the banks follow a rating system wherein the records of the
activities of the SHG would be scrutinized thoroughly and based on the points
accrued, the required loan amount would be sanctioned. Therefore the role of the
female members in being able to execute the tasks of the SHG and the
maintenance of records independently needs no further emphasis.
 It was indeed a pleasure to have observed that the role of the women in their
respective families has increased to the extent that important decisions in the family
are now taken up after due consultation with the female members of the household.
This has been a feature that has gained prominence post tsunami, especially in the
fishermen community. Amongst the members of the SHG, almost 100% reported
the new status of increased decision making powers which could be attributed to
their being members of an active SHG which generated a source of income through
which the women could now be independent in terms of deciding as to how she
could use the money as well as earning a new form of respect from both her
husband as well as her community members.
 With proper training and guidance from the Agency, the project will prove to be a
resounding success as it is one of a kind operating in the area.
 The PO of Oxfam Trust has been able to maintain a good rapport with the SHG
members.
Project for sale of Fish and Prawn
An SHG named Kadal Kanni existed prior to the tsunami. The members were involved
in small business. The SHG members all belonged to Nochikuppam. Post tsunami, most of
the women lost their investment and their domestic problems were further compounded by
loss of employment of their husbands. Since a few women were selling fish and a few women

5. had rudimentary knowledge of marketing, they hit upon an innovative idea of being able to
procure large quantity of fish/prawns cheaply and store them in deep freezers so that they
could cater to bulk orders from hotels/marriage/parties. In order to be able to do so, they
needed a deep freezer so as to be able to store fish. Since they were already working in close
cooperation with Kaingkarya, they approached the organization for help. Staff of Kaingkarya
conducted 3 modules of training to these members and made sure that they understand what
they are doing and how they should do this business.
Kaingkarya approached Oxfam Trust to accord support for the project, which it
accordingly sanctioned under the Livelihood for Women overhead. The contribution from the
various stakeholders were as under:-
 Total cost of the Project: Rs 73,700/-
 Contribution from SHG members: Rs 30,000/-
 Contribution from Oxfam Trust (CIDA): Rs 43,700/-
INPUT (RESOURCES AND
ACTIVITIES)
EXPECTED RESULTS
(OUTPUT)
PERFORMANCE
INDICATORS
SHG
 Building to
accommodate deep
freezer.
 Labour of members
Kaingkarya
 Concept training on
SHG formation
 Facilitation of
grant/assistance
 Guidance
Oxfam Trust (CIDA)
 Financial Assistance
 Trained SHG
members
 Starting fish storage,
and marketing of
product.
 Augmented income of
Self Help Group
women
 Increased Confidence
to continue the
business
 Routine marketing and
storage of fish/prawns.
 Bank Account and
cash book
transactions
 SHG records
 Empirical observation
of skills of women in
the procurement,
storage, marketing
and maintenance of
accounts.
Table 3.2
Comments/observations
Of the total budget of Rs 3,34,300/- allocated towards the overhead livelihood for
women, about Rs 43,700/- was allocated towards the project for sale of fish and prawn, or
13.07% of the budget allocated for the overhead livelihood for women. The evaluator met
initially the Agency staff associated with the project to obtain an overview of the same. The
evaluator interviewed the Director as well as the project coordinators associated with the
project in order to be able to ascertain the various nuances of the project. The various records,
reports that were generated wrt the project was studied in great detail to obtain a holistic
picture of the evolution as well as the involvement of the NGO with the project. Accordingly the
following observations were made wrt the Agency:
 The NGO was chosen by the Project Officer (PO) based in Chennai. The PO
himself had worked with the organization in the past.
 The NGO has a good track record of implementing projects and generally enjoyed a
good reputation amongst the NGOs operating in Tamilnadu.

6.  A participatory approach was adopted while assessing the need of the stakeholders
in the present project.
 Adequate time was spent in imparting training to the women on the Concept of
SHG, though it did not from a part of the Oxfam program.
 Close interaction between the Agency staff and the stakeholders was observed.
 The procurement of the Deep Freezer was undertaken jointly by the Agency and
the stakeholders.
 The documentation of the entire process however could be recorded in more detail.
 The receipts for the various cash transactions were diligently maintained.
 Narrative reports though sketchy were submitted on completion of the objectives of
the project.
 In terms of sustainability for the project, it was observed by the evaluator that the
Agency was ready to be involved with the SHG to help them expand/diversify in
future.
 The Agency maintained a good rapport with the PO of Oxfam Trust.
 The project was hampered in the initial stages due to heavy rains and the
subsequent flooding of the area housing the SHG members as well as the deep
freezer.
In addition to the above interview and content analysis of
the secondary data that the Agency had prepared, the evaluator
then planned a focused group discussion with members of the
Kadal Kanni SHG with an intention to gather empirical data
through observation as well as a transect walk/social survey of
the kuppam, where the SHG members lived. It was also important
that the evaluator acquaint himself with the various nuances of
the project first hand by empirical observations. The following
observations were made wrt the SHG:-
 An innovative project that has been well conceived and implemented.
 The Kadal Kanni SHG exists on ground.
 The women members belonged to a lower socio economic background.
 The SHG was equally represented where caste is concerned. The kuppam consists
of generally people from the MBCs, SC, and OBCs.
 The members were generally enthusiastic of the whole project.
 The evaluator started his day early. The idea was to observe the women in their
routine job of running the SHG. The evaluator had the privilege of accompanying the
women, Margaret and other members to the fish-auctioning site near Nochikuppam.
After the routine haggling and bidding, a variety of fish was bought. After the fish
was bought, the catch was divided amongst the women members for the
subsequent sale. The leftover fish was stored in the freezer for future use. The
women members would later in the day regroup with the sales proceeds of the day
after the selling their share of fish and the money would be collected , entered and
deposited to the Bank account of the SHG. Fish that was not sold would be stored
and resold the next day.
 Margaret was the leader of the SHG. She is a widow and as such heads a family of
two.
 The freezer is housed in her two-room tenement.

7.  The freezer is also being used in other innovative ways, for e.g. the ladies have hit
upon an idea to convert water into ice blocks which they sell it to the members as
well as outsiders at a small profit. A truly innovative use of the machine and
resource indeed.
 More training/practice for the maintenance of the various records as well as ledgers
are needed to be imparted to the SHG members to build their confidence levels.
 Presently there is not much of capital available for the SHG to procure large
amounts of fish in order to be able to incur a decent profit that could be channelized
into activities other than the procurement of cashew.
 For additional capital, the SHG plans to approach a nationalized bank for loan.
 For the sanction of loan, the banks follow a
rating system wherein the records of the
activities of the SHG would be scrutinized
thoroughly and based on the points accrued, the
required loan amount would be sanctioned.
Therefore the role of the members in being able
to execute the tasks of the SHG and the
maintenance of records independently needs no
further emphasis.
 It was indeed a pleasure to have observed that
the role of the women in their respective families
has increased to the extent that important
decisions in the family are now taken up after due consultation with the female
members of the household. This has been a feature that has gained prominence
post tsunami, especially in the fishermen community. Amongst the members of the
SHG, almost 100% reported the new status of increased decision making powers
which could be attributed to their being members of an active SHG which generated
a source of income through which the women could now be independent in terms of
deciding as to how she could use the money as well as earning a new form of
respect from both her husband as well as her community members.
 With proper training and guidance from the Agency, the project will prove to be a
resounding success as it is one of a kind operating in the area.
 The PO of Oxfam Trust has been able to maintain a good rapport with the SHG
members.