Our exploration into the domain of learning opportunities for women led us to ask a few questions:
What are the ground realities for women who are a part of Self Help Groups (SHGs)?
Are benefits equally shared or are some women more able to access them than others?
What determines the success or failure of these programmes?
What impact does the SHG phenomenon have on the discourse of empowerment and poverty?
What are the implications for State accountability?
What is the role played by other institutional players – financial institutions like banks, microfinance institutions (MFIs), corporate bodies, etc?
Questions like this led us at Nirantar to undertake two in-depth studies. One was a qualitative study of six SHG interventions in India, including four government programmes - Swarna Jayanti Swarozgar Yojana (SGSY), Development of Women and Children in Rural Areas (DWCRA), Swashakti and Velugu (now renamed ‘Indira Kranti Patham’), and two NGO programmes – Peace (Andhra Pradesh) and Anandi (Gujarat)
The second research study was a survey conducted by Nirantar to examine how women who are joining SHGs are being impacted by the processes that are taking place within these groups. The processes were primarily seen in the context of capacity building, literacy and its relationship with power. The survey included 2,750 SHGs from 16 states.
Some of our key learnings from the studies were that…
Dalits, Adivasis and Muslims were being excluded from the groups
Issues of financial efficiency and performance saw reducing focus on issues of solidarity, equity, justice and empowerment
Literacy was a major factor influencing group leadership and access to big loans
Capacity building was of a limited scope and nature, and accessible largely to leaders
