ViSV Shakti
A global women’s leadership network advancing women’s power in food and climate systems.
Why
This
Matters?
Women produce a significant
share of the world’s food.
They conserve seeds, sustain communities, and safeguard biodiversity.
Yet their knowledge, labour, and leadership remain insufficiently recognised in markets, data systems, and policy decisions.
Food systems cannot transform without women's leadership.
The Shift
ViSV Shakti represents a shift in how
women participate in food systems.
The goal is not only to include women in food systems, but to enable them to shape markets, influence decisions, and lead transformation.
The Roots
The Dryland Woman Farmer
At the center of ViSV Shakti is the dryland woman farmer.
Across India's rainfed landscapes, women cultivate crops under uncertain rainfall, conserve seeds, and sustain local food systems.
They work in some of the most climate-vulnerable regions, yet maintain practices that protect soil, biodiversity, and resilient agriculture. Despite this, their knowledge and leadership remain largely under-recognised in markets, policy, and data systems.
ViSV Shakti begins here.
Building the ecosystem around the knowledge, enterprise, and leadership of the women who cultivate the land.
The transformation of food systems begins at the roots.
Our Philosophy
ViSV Shakti is built on a simple idea:
Women must not only be included in food systems — they must be recognised, valued, and rewarded.
Recognise Her
Acknowledge women as farmers, knowledge holders, and leaders.
Value Her
Make women's work visible in markets, data, and policy.
Pay Her
Fair economic opportunities and enterprise pathways.
Publish Her
Document women's knowledge, innovations, and leadership.
Platform Her
Connect women to markets, networks, and global conversations.
Early Signals
of Change
Women Trained
Millet enterprises & value chains
Women-led Businesses
Local food enterprises growing
SHG Women
Government Partnership
Local Value Chains
Farm → Processing → Markets
The Model
IDENTITY & VOICE
Recognising women as farmers, innovators, and knowledge holders.
MARKET & ENTERPRISE
Connecting women-led enterprises to markets, institutions, and value chains.
CLIMATE & VALUE
Rewarding women’s role in climate-resilient agriculture.
The ViSV Shakti Tree
Policy & Scale
Market & Investment
Institutional Support
The Foundation
Institutional Support
The ViSV Shakti concept has been developed with catalytic support from Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) through the Coalition for Food Systems Transformation in India (CoFTI) under the Global Programme for Food Systems Transformation (GV-TES) of the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.
The initiative is currently being incubated by the ViSV Foundation, with the vision of building a scalable global leadership network for women in food and climate systems.
