Founded in 1983 at Bangalore, Karnataka ; Fedina (Foundation for Educational Innovations in Asia) has for aim to accompany the most oppressed and excluded populations so they can be able to defend their rights and become themselves actors in their emancipation.

Fedina is at the source of a vast network of organizations rooted in South India, the RGAS – Network of groups for social action, which regroups 114 000 members and defends the interests of at least 570 000 people counting all family members. Together, Fedina and the network fixed as priorities:

• The organization and unionization of workers in the unrecognized sector and rural landless workers (agricultural day-workers, mine labourers, etc.)
• The battle for the implementation of labour legislation and fundamental international laws(against bound labour, a form of slavery still widely exercised, against inequality between sexes, etc.)
• The battle against discrimination and violence towards the dalits (Untouchables), women (domestic violence and violence at work) and tribal populations (chased off their ancestral lands, notably those in the forest).

In this end Fedina meets with local groups who wish to mobilise for their fundamental human, social, economic, political and cultural rights and enrols them with RGAS. Fedina offers training and communication necessary for complete emancipation: knowledge of rights, and how to mobilise to demand total adherence to these, etc. Fedina trains locally selected coaches, who have strong talents for mobilising masses and a fighting spirit, to guide each group.

Fedina also works in partnership with other Indian civil society organizations to lead various campaigns nationally and internationally (for example on the right to social security or minimum wage).

Birth of a Partnership
Frères des Hommes and Fedina first met in 1994. Many joint ventures have been carried out on a variety of themes : unionisation, access to land, standing up for democracy and citizenship, the battle against exclusion and discrimination touching dalit and tribal populations.

Activities led together

India - Help improve the rights of the poor, for a better life !