Vinaykumar has worked for over 13 years on livelihoods and skill development,
particularly in the bamboo sector. He is a conceptual thinker who has effectively
partnered with Central and State Governments, foundations and corporates on
a broad array of projects in income generation and skills training with a focus on
women empowerment and rural businesses opportunities. The Gadchiroli
Agarbatti Project, implemented with the assistance of the Tata Trust and the
Department of Forest, Government of Maharashtra, illustrates such economic
value addition. It was selected as one of the 24 ‘Good Business in Social
Entrepreneurship across India’ by Outlook Business as well as the ‘Prime
Ministers Award for Innovative Project’. He worked on the Draft Policy for the
revival of the Raw Agarbatti Making Industry for the Ministry of Agriculture,
Government of India. Currently, he is a consultant with the Maharashtra
Bamboo Development Board for the promotion of the bamboo industry in
Maharashtra. Prior to his shift to the development sector, Vinaykumar was a
career banker with over 15 years of experience across marquee brands like
Societe Generale, IDBI Bank, ABN Amro, BNP Paribas and ICICI Bank with
specialisation in international trade finance.
Vinaykumar is an advisor with Uravu Eco Links on project development and
bamboo-based livelihood projects.