Impacting Discourse & Policy

Over the past few years, we have taken the learnings from our exploration and the studies in particular to fellow feminists, researchers, development practitioners, educationists and the State. We have tried to create fora and use existing ones in order to generate an alternative discourse on the SHG phenomenon from the grassroots level up to national and international level.

Our learnings and advocacy efforts have fed into influencing the XI Five Year Plan process and in lobbying related to redrafting the Micro Finance Bill 2007. Currently, we are in the process of mobilising civil society organisations to develop a Charter for SHGs to help activists, practitioners and government functionaries in charting out a vision for designing policies and programmes related to SHGs and women’s empowerment.

Today, the focus of our interventions are at all levels, ranging from perspective building and training of community-based NGOs, building a collective voice within civil society organisations, and other advocacy efforts aimed at impacting national policies and using international advocacy mechanisms like CEDAW.

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