Across the state of Jharkhand, a new opportunity is taking root, one that combines climate resilience, long-term income security, and collective enterprise. For the first time at scale, commercially viable bamboo is being introduced as a livelihood pathway for smallholder women farmers, transforming unutilized land into productive, income-generating ecosystems.
Over the next four years, this partnership aims to integrate 1,00,000 smallholder women farmers into the seed-to-market bamboo value chain, beginning with 10,000 women across five tribal districts this monsoon. Beyond cultivation, the initiative will enable women to participate in collective enterprises, ensuring stronger market access, value addition, and sustained income streams.
At Industree Foundation, this work builds on over two decades of enabling women’s economic empowerment through nature-based value chains. As the technical and knowledge partner, Industree brings a seed-to-market approach, from FSC®️-certified bamboo plantations to traceable supply chains linked to national and global demand. Industree has signed similar MoUs with State Rural Livelihood Missions in Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Odisha, Telangana, and Tripura.
In a pioneering achievement, Industree Foundation has secured India’s first FSC®️ Forest Management (FSC®️-FM) certification for privately owned bamboo plantations. The FSC®️ label is the world’s most trusted mark for sustainable forestry, and this certification opens global market opportunities for Indian manufacturers to source certified raw materials and supply compliant and traceable products to customers worldwide.
Jharkhand now stands at the beginning of a new economic pathway, one where women are at the centre of building a regenerative, market-linked future.
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