EmpowHER Biz Initiative
09-01-2025
08:44 AM
1 min read

Overview:
The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) of NITI Aayog, launched EmpowHER Biz – Sapno Ki Udaan in partnership with New Shop, India’s convenience retail chain under its Award to Reward (ATR) program.
About EmpowHER Biz Initiative:
- It will offer mentorship and comprehensive training, covering retail management, digital tools, financial literacy and business development to aspiring women entrepreneurs.
- Through this collaboration with New Shop, WEP aims to create a robust retail ecosystem that empowers women entrepreneurs and drives sustainable growth in the sector.
- Under the initiative, fifty participants aged 18–35, will be selected through an online application process based on specific criteria.
- Top twenty of these participants will receive a 100% waiver on New Shop franchise fees, empowering them to own and operate their retail businesses with significantly reduced barriers to entry.
- The program is being launched for women from Delhi NCR, Punjab, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat.
Key points about Women Entrepreneurship Platform
- It was incubated in NITI Aayog in 2018 as an aggregator platform, transitioned into a public-private partnership in 2022.
- It aims at empowering women entrepreneurs by overcoming information asymmetry and providing continuum of support across different pillars- Access to Finance; Market Linkages; Training and Skilling; Mentoring & Networking; Compliance & Legal Assistance and Business Development Services.
- With over 30 public and private sector partners, WEP fosters collaboration to develop scalable and impactful programs that benefit women entrepreneurs.
- Since 2023, the ‘Award to Reward’ initiative under WEP offers a plug and play framework for stakeholders to develop impactful programs.

Q1: What is NITI Aayog?
The National Institution for Transforming India, established on January 1, 2015, is the policy think tank of the Indian government, replacing the Planning Commission. It focuses on inclusive development, cooperative federalism, and sustainable growth. The organization is led by the Prime Minister and members include state representatives and experts.
Source: PIB