Our Vision: “Voice and Choice for Every Woman”:
i-Saksham is a grassroots nonprofit transforming leadership opportunities for young women from the most marginalized communities in Bihar. Founded in 2015, we nurture confident, capable, and purpose-driven women leaders ('Edu-Leaders') through a 2-year experiential fellowship grounded in education, gender equity, and community leadership. i-Saksham’s mission is to build rural young women from the most underserved communities as ‘grassroots leaders—change-makers’—through its 2-year Edu-Leader Fellowship. The Challenge: According to NFHS-5, young girls and women in Bihara) 88% drop out of higher education, only 28.8% have completed 10+ years of education
b) 40% forced into early marriages, and
c) 96% leaving the labor force - the lowest female workforce participation rates in India
Yet, 10 million young women in Bihar represent a powerful untapped potential for social transformation.
How We Work:
i-Saksham combines experiential learning, family engagement, peer solidarity, and visible civic leadership — a proven model to transform patriarchal norms and expand public space for women.
Through the 2-year Edu-Leader Fellowship, young women:
a) Gain confidence to cultivate aspirations through 200+ hours of leadership training, gender coaching & peer mentoring
b) Inspire adolescents by conduct fortnightly life-skills sessions and SMART goal setting.
c) Lead community campaigns, e.g. on school dropouts, early marriage, and menstrual health
d) Influence families and communities through counselling and showcasing successes.
Emerge as role models by pursuing aspirations of their choice through stakeholder linkages.
Our Impact (2015–25) - 10 Years:
Shared with Public
