Celebrating 15 years of empowering social change, Cognizant Foundation (CF), recognized NGO partners who have helped CF to empower and enable underserved person with skills training programmes and for rebuilding communities.

DHAN Foundation has received the appreciation award in recognition of “strategic partnership in making a difference in the lives of many”.

To rehabilitate the flood affected communities through livelihoods and housing support, DHAN Foundation partnering with Cognizant Foundation initiated Rebuilding Communities Programme in St. Thomas Mount block, in September 2016. The primacy of the project was to create community owned sustainable rehabilitation and livelihoods model through community banking programme including livelihoods, health and education interventions for holistic development.

Seven panchayats among fifteen which were severely affected by Chennai floods during the year 2015 were selected to implement the project. Women empowerment, housing security, livelihood enhancement, health and education interventions were the programme components of the project.

Kalanjiam groups were formed outreaching 3957 members within one year of the project implementation. Trainings and capacity building activities have been promoted gradually empowering the group level leadership to panchayat level leadership. Members and their families were enrolled into state and central government enrolments viz., PMJJBY, PMSBY, Jan-Dhan accounts, Adal Pension Yojana Schemes.

Purpose-wise loans have been disbursed to member families: 1612 member families availed 2313 loans under livelihood support, 4314 loans were disbursed under educational support to 3781 member families and for house renovations and toilet construction, loans support was given to 882 member families.

Catered the needs of adolescent girls through adolescent girl groups. Students’ educational needs were sufficed through eight remedial centres and computer science courses. Tailoring training, terrace and kitchen garden trainings were provided year around. Kitchen garden seed packets were provided to 3000 families every year, this is sufficing the nutritional requirements of the families for a minimum of three to four months.