Alphina Jos Joslin Thambi is the Deputy Managing Director of BWDA Finance Limited (BFL) and Vice President of Bullock-cart Workers Development Association (BWDA). In line with the organization’s vision, she works for a
“Poverty-free, prosperous, equitable and sustainable society”.
The primary objective of her work is,
“Inclusion of the Excluded”
through sustainable holistic development of low-income households, primarily bullock-cart workers, laborers, rural artisans, poor, needy women, and children in Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Karnataka, Pondicherry, and Andaman & Nicobar Islands.
Alphina holds a Bachelor of Technology – Information Technology with Masters in Business Administration from VIT University, Vellore, India.
Alphina worked in MicroSave Consulting’s E/M-Banking/ Product Development practice group and has worked extensively with MFIs and financial institutions in India and Sri Lanka. Her work focused on E/M – Banking through the Business Correspondent Model, Community Based Organisations and Sector Studies on Financial Inclusion. Her work included strategic planning for community-based organizations and institutions venturing into business correspondent space, product development, institutional assessment, organisational strengthening, systems design and qualitative market research to understand customer needs and sector scenarios.
Alphina has been associated with the BWDA Group in various roles for over a decade. She was an independent Director of BWDA Finance Limited for three years, DCEO for four years, CEO for three years before she became the DMD of BFL. Alphina was also appointed the Vice President of BWDA in 2016 before which she was a Managing Committee member for 12 years. Alphina is also a Director in BWDA Mercantile Pvt. Ltd since its inception in 2013.
At BFL, Alphina spearheads the financial inclusion initiatives and is responsible for strategy, program design, implementation, and overall management of the Institution’s activities. Alphina ensures access to safe, easy, and affordable credit and other financial services for poor and vulnerable groups which is a key factor in accelerating their growth and reducing income disparities and poverty. Alphina is passionate about gender equality and has placed women’s empowerment at the core of her work. As Vice President of BWDA, she facilitates strategy, design, and implementation of holistic development initiatives that contribute to 14 out of the 17 United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. She manages projects in financial inclusion, water and sanitation, women’s empowerment, health and wellbeing, education, widows and destitute welfare, senior citizen welfare, child empowerment, capacity building and livelihood development, relief and rehabilitation, bullock-cart worker development, etc., for the upliftment of low-income households.
She was awarded the Sevai Mangai Award 2021 by Captain TV, South India Women Achievers Award 2020 for Excellence in Social Service, Twell Magazine, Social Leader of the Year Award 2019, Transformance Forum, Emerging Leader Award 2019, Elets Technomedia, and Mother Theresa Leadership Award for Excellence in Microfinance Lending.