Walmart signs MoU with Tamil Nadu to back capacity building of small businesses

Walmart and Flipkart on Wednesday signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Tamil Nadu’s Department of micro, small and medium enterprises to establish long-term cooperation for providing capacity-building support to MSMEs in the state.

Through the Walmart Vriddhi Supplier Development Programme (Walmart Vriddhi), delivered by knowledge partner Swasti, entrepreneurs and small businesses will receive training free of cost, through a blended learning approach.

The programme provides opportunities to join online, offline and export channels, and reach pan-India and global marketplaces as part of the supply chains of Walmart, Flipkart, and other leading companies. The programme will also organise training seminars and workshops to further enable the growth and development of small and medium businesses in the state.

On the signing of the MoU, Tamil Nadu chief minister M K Stalin said, ‘Tamil Nadu is home to one of the largest numbers of MSMEs in the country that are renowned all over the world for their product quality and craftsmanship. Our MSMEs are the backbone of our economy, and their growth is key to helping us achieve our vision of making Tamil Nadu a $1 trillion economy by 2030. We welcome the MoU with Walmart, Flipkart and Swasti, which shall further strengthen our MSME ecosystem and allow them to expand their businesses through access to online and offline retail.’

Nidhi Munjal, VP, international partnership services, Walmart, said, ‘Through Walmart Vriddhi, we look forward to partnering with the government of Tamil Nadu and supporting their efforts to build a robust MSME ecosystem, by providing potential access to online and offline markets in India and globally as well as providing local training and support, free of cost. We are committed to tripling our exports from India to $10 billion annually by 2027, and will keep extending our support to small businesses, enabling them to grow and prosper.’