Shripur Mahila-O-Khadi Unnayan Samiti (SMOKUS)

Their activities include:

• Poorest Areas Civil Society (PACS) Program: PACS is an initiative of the UK Government’s Department for International Development, in partnership with civil society. It helps the socially excluded communities (scheduled castes/tribes, women, people living with disabilities) to claim their rights and entitlements more effectively. This program aims to reduce poverty in the poorest regions of the country through long-term and sustainable interventions which include – (i) Ensuring alternative livelihood options for marginalised communities and families, especially women, under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. (ii) Increasing access for pregnant and lactating mothers from tribal communities to maternal health services under the Janani Suraksha Yojana maternal health scheme including ante-natal and post-natal care. (iii) Increasing access to institutional health services. (iv) Increasing non-discriminatory access for women and children under the Integrated Child Development Services program. (v) Encouraging formation of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) and organising capacity building workshops.
• Terre des Hommes (TDH) Suisse: SMOKUS has been actively working on anti–trafficking issues and reduction of unsafe migration through establishment of good governance. TDH seeks to educate youth to work towards a society which encourages sustainable development. The programme activities include – (i) Formation of village level safety network system. (ii) Providing ‘Safe Migration Help Card’ to migrants to prevent trafficking. (iii) Developing a Child Resource Centre and setup of Village Resource & Information Centre. (iv) Strengthening SHGs. (v) Advocacy and networking initiatives.
• Prevention of Parent To Child Transmission (PPTCT): The objective of the partnership for this project is to prevent HIV transmission among pregnant/lactating mothers and their children and mitigate the impact of HIV by Expanding access to testing, Counselling and prevention of parent to child transmission services, Strengthening inter-program linkages, and Integrating HIV Services with the general health system.