Supporting the urban migrant workforce
India has a unique opportunity with the availability of a 55 million-strong potential rural workforce. However, a large section of this population that migrates to cities finds themselves without networks of support, and critical resources to help meet their needs. In collaboration with a garment manufacturer, GBL is establishing a model Migrant Support Center (MSC) and based on a framework which provides services, such as financial literacy, counselling services, and awareness of available aid policies.
Can setting up a Migrant Support Center in cities help urban migrants realize their full potential?
The objective of the Migrant Support Center (MSC) study is to understand the issues faced by interstate and intrastate migrant workers in an urban setting and what factors deter them from meeting their potential. We aim to employ human-centered design to map and understand the journeys of migrant workers in organized and unorganized sectors. To this effect, we will be working with migrant populations in the IT capital of India, Bengaluru. Our goal is to eventually help scale this model to the broader migrant workforce with the aid of an implementation partner.
Image credits: Shalin Gor