In rural India, only three in 10 internet users are a woman (IMRB’s I Cube Report 2017). A partnership with Tata Trusts, Internet Saathi gives women access to the digital world, and knowledge they can use and share. The program trains “Saathis” — specialists — who in turn can train their community and neighboring villages.
Launched in partnership with Tata Trusts,“InternetSaathi” was launched in 2015 to equip women in rural India with internet skills. It is the result of an effort that involved a pilot program and extensive ground research in villages in Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Gujarat. In this ongoing program, “Saathis” are selected from among the village women and provided with internet training on smartphones. They then pass on that knowledge, providing internet access, and becoming ambassadors of digital literacy in their communities.