Empowering Youth and Women for a Brighter Future
Building self-reliance, dignity, and equal opportunity through economic empowerment and community-driven programs
LEARN MOREEconomic Literacy & Financial Empowerment
Entrepreneurship & Business Skills Training
Livelihood Opportunities & Income Stability
Women & Girls Leadership Development
Research & Evidence-Based Interventions
Who We Are
Empowering Youth and Women Since 2019
Research Center for Development Studies (RCDS) is one of the youth-founded organizations established in 2019 that work for the empowerment of both youth and women as guided by the fundamental spirit of its mission in supporting the foundation to create entrepreneurship and financial literacy while establishing self-reliance for persons in vulnerable situations.
Thus far, RCDS has brought more than four years of impactful interventions mainly focused on creating awareness and advocating rights while delivering initiative programs that specifically uplift marginalized communities. Through innovative support mechanisms, the foundation has actually been a greater contribution toward creating sustainable opportunities for the youth and their women for resilient lives.
Importantly, RCDS has been in partnership with Lutheran World Relief (LWR) for a one-year period whereby both organizations are engaged in capacity building as well as financial literacy initiatives, which are expected to be beneficial to the communities of the Banke, Bardiya, and Saptari districts in line with the overall objective of the foundation toward empowering individuals against socio-economic problems.
LEARN MOREWhat Our Success Looks Like
Over the last three years, RCDS has successfully empowered more than 600 women and girls with practical financial knowledge, business skills, and entrepreneurship training in vulnerable communities across Nepal.
600+ Women & Girls Empowered
Over 600 participants gained practical financial knowledge and understanding of government tax regulations for their small-scale businesses, enhancing income stability and household decision-making roles.
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Entrepreneurship & Business Skills
Comprehensive entrepreneurship training and business skills development programs designed to enable women and girls to establish and manage sustainable income-generating activities.
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Expanded Livelihood Opportunities
Created multiple pathways for income generation through skills training, small business support, and access to market opportunities for women and girls in vulnerable communities.
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Strengthened Household Decision-Making
Empowered women to actively participate and lead household decision-making processes, strengthening their roles as economic contributors and family leaders.
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Our Mission
Empowering Youth and Women for a Brighter Future
The Research Center for Development Studies (RCDS) is a youth-founded organization dedicated to empowering youth and women, particularly those living in vulnerable socio-economic settings. RCDS is guided by its core principles of self-reliance, dignity, and equal opportunity of women and girls.
RCDS works for the upliftment of marginalized women and girls by strengthening their economic literacy, expanding livelihood opportunities, and building their capacity to move forward independently. Through community-driven programs, we promote economic empowerment, entrepreneurship, life skills development, and awareness of issues that directly affect women and girls in disadvantaged communities.
RCDS believes that meaningful empowerment goes beyond financial support – it requires creating safe, inclusive and supportive environments where women and girls can access resources, have their needs met and participate equally in community decision-making.
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Our Vision
Building an Inclusive and Prosperous Future
To build an inclusive, fair and economically rich society where women and girls have equal access to opportunities, resources and decision-making power, supported by research-driven insights that strengthen evidence-based action and long-term impact.
LEARN MOREHow We Work
Our Approach
Economic Empowerment
Financial literacy, entrepreneurship training, and livelihood opportunity expansion
Research & Evidence
Data-driven insights to understand barriers and design effective interventions
Community Engagement
Working with local stakeholders, youth groups, and grassroots networks
Join Us in Making a Difference
Together, we can create lasting change and build resilient communities where women and girls thrive.