Barli Institute, India

Barli Development Institute for Rural Women, India

Mona Partner Since 2005

Barli was established in 1985 with the aim of empowering rural and tribal women to become agents of social change in their commu­nities. Serving young women from villages across Madhya Pradesh, Barli offers a six-month residential training program in literacy, moral leadership, nutrition and health, environmental conservation, and income generation. It has trained nearly 10,000 women from over 950 villages, providing them with the skills to start their own business and the confidence to lead the transformation of their villages.

The Challenge

India is home to 1.3 billion people with 20% earning less than $2.10/day and 50% under the age of 25. India's daughters are generally unwanted, unsafe, unequal, and unfree. They make up one third of the world's child brides (5 million girls) and 50% of married women report domestic violence. Every year, 1 million girls are killed in the womb through selective termination. 


The need for access to quality education is great and a significant challenge, especially for girls and young women in India's remote rural areas where girls traditionally don't go to school and are considered suitable only for marriage, having children, and caring for their families.

The Solution: Barli Institute Programs

Watch this short video on how Barli is empowering women and transforming villages across Madhya Pradesh, India. 

Training & Education

Barli's training program covers three main areas:


  • Literacy - 100% of students pass the national literacy exam at the end of the six-month program.


  • Vocational training - Students learn tailoring so they can become financially independent. All graduates receive a sewing machine and a certificate that allows them to apply for small business loans to set up their own tailoring shops.


  • Community Development - The students learn about organic farming,  solar cooking, health and hygiene, women’s rights, conflict resolution, and community service.


Barli also builds the capacity of a smaller group of women who have received secondary education to facilitate similar training in exten­sion centers.

Empowerment

When young women first come to Barli, many are very shy with limited ability to read and write. Within the Institute's nurturing walls, they are safe to find their voices as women and gain the self-confidence to pursue their dreams. Recognizing that changing the hearts and minds of husbands, parents, children, grassroots leaders, local institutions, and other members of the community is equally essential to the process of empowering women, Barli's director and teachers regularly visit the villages of alumni and conduct conferences and meetings as well as short-term courses.


 "...The nurturing, loving environment at Barli Institute has instilled new confidence in me. I have come out of my shell and now live a joyful and meaningful life. Learning new skills and a positive attitude has changed my outlook on life.” 

- Nanudi, Barli graduate


Read Nanudi's story: Discovering a "joyful and meaningful life"

Education is light and air.

"To be without education and skills is to be a bird without wings. You can see the sky and the endless opportunities, but you are not able to reach them. It makes you feel helpless. Education gives you the power and the strength to transform your life and that of others. It makes you confident and self-reliant. It is like opening windows in a closed room and flooding it with light and fresh air."

- Jhamku, 17-year-old Barli graduate

Gender Equality & Entrepreneurship

Increasing the awareness and practice of gender equality is one of Barli's primary goals. Through education and training, 94% of Barli graduates, like Laxmi (photo right), contribute to the income and well-being of their families.


By learning a trade and bringing in an income, the women earn the respect of their families and village, change the hearts and minds of their fathers and brothers about gender equality, and inspire other young women to walk in their footsteps.


Read Laxmi's story: Teaching Her Husband about Gender Equality... & Tailoring.

Community Development

Educating a girl at Barli impacts the lives of hundreds of people over time as she arises to contribute to the overall well-being of her village. We met Kali (photo left and in banner above) in 2013 when she first enrolled at Barli. Since then, Kali’s life experience has provided a representative real-time narrative of how a young woman, empowered through education to see herself as an agent of social change, can impact her family, peers, and village – and, in time, change the hearts and minds of an entire community on the critical importance of education, gender equality, and capacity building in leading their own social transformation. 


Read Kali's story: Educate a girl. Transform an entire community.


"Thank you for supporting the education of my daughter. She is now a source of inspiration for all the girls in our village, and all the fathers and mothers want their daughters to be like Kali.” 

- Kali's father 

How we help

Mona Foundation has partnered with Barli Development Institute since 2005 and fully funds its operations. Barli has grown in capacity over the years and now trains new cohorts of young women every year while also continuing to support its graduates in their home villages. With its focus on service, community development, and ongoing accompaniment, educating one woman at Barli improves the lives of 10-20 others immediately and 100 or more over time.

The wings with which we soar.

"Mona Foundation's unwavering support is the cornerstone of our success. Together we have seen how education breaks barriers and shapes brighter futures. Mona Foundation is not merely a supporter or funder of our projects. They are the very wings with which our organization soars higher. They believe in our mission. It is above funding; it is true partnership. They propel Barli to move forward, changing lives and making meaningful impact in the community. They breath life into our dreams."

- Tahera Jadhav, Director of Barli Institute

2023 Achievements

  • 150 young women from 79 villages (19 new) trained and then educated 4,500 others
  • 22 teachers trained
  • 450 family members engaged
  • 90 days of travel by Executive Director to villages, following up with alumni and recruiting new students


2024 Needs, $98,367

  • Anticipate empowering 150 women


  • Train 25 teachers


  • Infrastructure and general maintenance, $19,846
Support Barli's 2024 Needs

Stories of Impact

portrait of couple standing in their taoiloring shop

Lalita is from Chaklala village. She is an example of making gender equality a reality in her life and through it, is changing the life of her family and opening the eyes of her community to the value of girls. Upon graduation from Barli, she taught her husband how to sew. Just imagine what it took for her to convince her Indian husband to do that. She then trained her brother in law. She now has five sewing machines! Her husband, in addition to sewing, has started a grocery store and sells gasoline for motorcycles. With their income they have bought a home and a motorcycle. 


Lalita is also changing the farming practices of her in-laws by installing a solar dehydrator so that all their excess vegetables and crops could be dried and used, or sold at a later time. This was also a skill she learned at Barli.  

Garli is from the town of Umrali. She has one of the nicest tailoring shop set up and has built herself an amazing house, including a neon lined staircase!  Her story is about grace and empowerment. She comes from a rural village and after attending Barli, she opened her shop and married. She immediately trained her how to sow. Soon after, her husband fell in love with her sister, they eloped and left her with no word for years.  Garli did not want to protest or raise a commotion as this was about her sister.  She chose grace and and worked as hard as she could, has built herself an amazing house and successful business!  Now, the husband wants her back and she refuses to take him back and instead has “sentenced him to the kitchen to serve tea to her guests".

April 2024 - Kantu is from a rural village and lives off the land. Her tailoring shop is one of the most organized and fully developed businesses. She also opened a grocery store next to her tailoring shop.  She has also set up a couple other grocery stores for members of her family and her dream is to create a chain of grocery stores. She is to be married soon and when asked what if her husband would not let her pursue her dream, she replied, “then I would not marry him!”

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January 2024 - Selmi graduated from Barli in 2022 and returned to her village feeling inspired to continue her education. Although she faced many obstacles at home, including being shunned by the entire village because of two imprisoned family members, Selmi persevered to complete her high school degree. Her plans to go to college were challenged when the two family members were released from prison and demanded she contribute to the family’s income. The Barli team visited Selmi's family and persuaded her parents to support her education. Selmi is now back at Barli where she teaches new trainees and attends university. Her resilience in overcoming personal challenges serves as an inspiring example. She lives her favorite classroom quote everyday: "Every challenge conquered is a victory inscribed in the book of your unstoppable journey."  

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