Vodafone has launched Vodafone Sakhi, a product to empower the women in rural areas. Using Vodafone Sakhi, women can do private recharge using an OTP code, without sharing the mobile number. The OTP can be used for all recharges done over a 24-hour period. Also, it comes with emergency calling feature allowing them to make calls for 10 minutes with zero balance.
Vodafone Sakhi is currently launched in areas of Dehradun, Saharanpur & Firozabad in UP West and Uttarakhand. The price of the pack starts at Rs. 52.
“Our studies show that women in rural areas face socio-economic challenges in accessing mobile services. They tend to follow a shared phone concept, as they are hesitant to share mobile number due to security concerns. They rely almost entirely on incoming calls and depend on their families for recharges,” Dilip Kumar Ganta, Business Head UP-West, and Uttarakhand, Vodafone India spoke about the scenario that led the company to launch Vodafone Sakhi.
“Vodafone Sakhi have been designed especially to bridge the telecom needs of women in rural areas and address their barriers to access mobile services at will. We are very proud to introduce ‘Vodafone Sakhi’ a unique product aimed at empowering women across UP-West. We want the women to use mobile as a tool to empower themselves and optimize their efficacy,’ he added.
All Vodafone Sakhi packs come with 30 days validity. On Rs. 52 pack, it offers Rs. 42 talk time and 50MB of 2G/3G data. On Rs. 78 pack, the subscriber gets a talk time of Rs. 62 along with 50MB of 2G/3G data. On recharging with Rs. 99, he/she can avail Talktime worth Rs. 79 along with 50MB of 2G/3G data. As a launch offer, Vodafone Sakhi provides free health and beauty tips for the first 90 days.
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The study pertaining to the data, Vodafone Connected Women Report 2014, stated that 300 million fewer women than men own a mobile phone. This is said to be the largest gender gap in the emerging economies.
