PaperAnantaBasudevSahooAndSandhyaRaniDas

8/10/2019 PaperAnantaBasudevSahooAndSandhyaRaniDas

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Women Empowerment Thorough Self Help Groups- A Case Study

Ananta Basudev Sahu*and Sandhya Rani Das**

Abstract

The present study is an attempt to analyse the role and performanceof SHGs in promoting women's empowerment in Gajapati District ofOrissa.The broad objective of the study is to analyses the operatingsystem of SHGs for mobiliation of saving! delivery of credit to theneedy! management of group funds! repayment of loans! in building upleadership! establishing lin"age with ban"s and e#amine the socialbene$ts derived by the members. %n order to collect and gatherprimary data! $eld observation and structured &uestionnaire surveymethods were employed. %n addition! information was also collectedthrough discussions and interviews with local GOs and government'sgrass roots level wor"ers. There are ()* SHGs wor"ing in Gajapatidistrict. Here the researcher has chosen *+ SHGs from each bloc" ofthe district. %n total the study covers ,+ SHGs with )++ members. Thestudy reveals that SHGs had set a new agenda for $nancialintermediation by ban"s in the form of micro-credit. y the formationof SHGs! credits are demanded for various purposes /domestic!health! festivals! repayment of old debts! investment! etc.0. Similarlydi1erent economic activities /collection! processing and mar"eting ofminor forest products! individual business! goatery! dairy etc.0 areunderta"en by the SHG members after joining the group. Habits ofsavings! economic independence! self con$dence! social cohesion!asset ownership! freedom from debt! additional employment! etc.bene$ts are derived by the SHG members. Thus! SHGs have servedthe cause of women empowerment! social solidarity and socio-economic betterment of the poor for their consolidation.

*Research Officer, International Institute For Population Sciences, Mumai!""**Sr# $ecturer, Department of %conomics, Berhampur &niversity, Orissa! '(

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Introduction

The concept of empowerment is de$ned as the process by whichwomen ta"e control and ownership of their choices The coreelements of empowerment have been de$ned as agency / theabil ity to de$ne one2s goals and act upon them0! awareness of

gendered power structures! sel f-esteem! and sel f-con$dence/3abeer!(++*0. 4mpowerment can ta"e place at a hierarchy ofdi1erent levels 5 individual! household! community and societal 5and is facilitated by providing encouraging factors /e.g. e#posureto new act iv it ies! which can build capacit ies0 and removinginhibiting factors /e.g. lac" of resources and s"i lls0 . %n thisconnection 6icro-$nance with Self Help Groups play an e1ectiverole for promoting women empowerment. % t i s not only ane1ic ient tool to $ght against poverty! but a lso as a means of promoting the empowerment of the most marginalied sections ofthe population! especially women. 7ccording to 4llie osch it is

just old wine in a new bottle /osch! (++(0. %t consists of a group

of people of three to eight persons on the condition that each ofthem would be assuming responsibil ity for the development ofall. 6icro 8inance institution started in %ndia in *9)+s throughSelf Help Groups /SHGs0 model. %t is the Grameen replicationmodel of angladesh. There is nearly :!++!+++ SHGs wor"ingwhole over %ndia. %t is true that the concept of micro$nance is

yet to spread its wings all over %ndia! but at the rate in which itis e#panding its branches! very soon it would be reaching at thedoorsteps of the poor houses. The most successful region formicro$nance is the Southern part of %ndia; 7ndhra


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the district. %t is needless to say that tribals are underdevelopedand malnour ished . So the economy o f Gajapati d ist ri ct i sre>ected the same na"ed picture.

+


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Table 1.1 Total Population, Rural and UrbanPopulation by Sex in i!erent Bloc"# andUrban Area# of $a%apati i#trict

S.&o.

Bloc"'Urban $eo(raphical area#)'"*

+ale e*ale Total Sex Ratio

* Gumma *+?).9? :*?)?

::)+* @,(), 9:*.?,*A

( 3asinagar ?AA.99 (?+((

(?@+: ?)@(, 9A@.:),

: 6ohana @,,.* ,@9@?

,)+)9 **,+,:

9)+.@::(

? uagada ?:9.@9 ((A@*

(?*?A ?@9+) 9?(.@+*@

, Gosani ?9?.*A ::9)@

:?)(( @))+) 9A,.99((

@ B.Cdayagiri ?@@.,9 (A:,@

(A*,: ,?,+9 *++A.?A@

A Bayagada 9@*.,* :*:+)

::?(: @?A:* 9:@.A(+(

Urban

* 3asinagar *+.:@ ?A)+ ,++( 9A)( 9,,.@*A)

(


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wor"ers! 9*!+++ were cultivators and *(,!+++ were agriculturallabourers. 7bout *@.,+ per cent employment is generated underSGBE! out of which ?.)A per cent were S=s! ).), per cent wereSTs and ( .A) per cent were O=s . There a re ()*9 groupswor"ing throughout the district of Gajapati and the number ofwomen participants was :A!+:(. Out of them 9,9 groups are

wor"ing under GOs! *)(* groups are wor"ing under the %=DS/%ntegrated =hild Development Schemes0! (( in loc" level and)+ groups are wor"ing independen tly.

Re-ie of /iterature

8ew studies are available on SHG and micro-$nance and womenempowerment. The researcher has tried to review the followingF

Osman /(+++0 in his article remar"ed that micro-$nanceschemes a lone can not a lleviate poverty. The battle for totaleradication of poverty re&uires combining micro-$nance schemes

with parallel! complementary programmes addressing the socialand cultural dimensions of want! privation! impoverishment anddispossession. 3apur /(++*0 in her study tried to discuss! analyseand answer the challenging &uestions as to why despite al l thee1 orts and progress made! still there continues to be so much ofgender discrimination and what strategies! actions and measuresto be underta"en to achieve the e#pected goal of empowerment.She opined that women2s empowerment is much more li"ely to beachieved if women have total control over their ownorganisat ions ! which they can susta in both $nanc ia lly andmanagerially without direct dependence on others.


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decisions about e#penditure and other issues leading to greatere#penditure on women2s welfare. arasaiah /(++?0 in her studymentioned that the change in women2s contribution to society isone of the str i"ing phenomena of the late twentieth century.

7ccording to him micro-credit plays an important role inempowering women. Giving women the opportunity to realise

their potential in all spheres of society is increasingly important.=heston 3uhn /(++?0 in their study concluded that micro-$nance programmes have been very success fu l in reachingwomen. This gives micro-$nance institutions an e#traordinaryopportunity to act intentionally to empower poor women and tomin imise the poten tially negative impacts some womene#periences. 6anime"alai /(++?0 in his article commentedthat to run the income generating act iv it ies successful ly theSHGs must get the help o f GOs. The ban" o1icials shouldcounsel and guide the women in select ing and implementingpro$table income generating activit ies. He remar"ed that theformation of SHGs have boosted the self-image and con$dence of

rural women. Sahu and Tripathy /(++,0 in their edited boo"views that A+ per cent of world2s poor are women. 7ccess to poorto ban"ing services is important not only for poverty alleviationbut a lso for opt imis ing the ir contr ibut ion to the growth o f regional as wel l as the nat ional economy. Sel f Help Groups/SHGs0 have emerged as the most vital instrument in the processof participatory development and women empowerment. Therural women are the marginalied groups in the society becauseof socio-economic constraints. They remain bac"ward and lowerposition of the social h ierar ch ical ladder. They can liftthemselves from the morass of poverty and stagnation throughmicro $nance and formation of Sel f-Help Groups.Das Gupta/(++,0 in his article commented that a paradigm shift is re&uiredfrom $nancial sector reformI to micro-$nance reformI. Jhilethe prior i ty sector needs to be made lean! mandatory microcredit must be monitored rigorously. Simultaneously space andscope have to be properly designed for providing competit iveenvironment to micro-$nance services. 4#tensive database needsto be created by the B% for understanding micro-$nance. Sinha/(++,0 in his study has observed that micro-$nance is ma"ing asigni$cant contribution to both the savings and borrowing of thepoor in the country. 7ccording to him the main use of micro-cr edit is f or direct investment . There is of cour se somefungibility! depending on household credit re&uirements at thet ime of loan disbursement. Some studies reveal that micro-$nance programmes have had pos it ive as wel l as negat iveimpacts on women. Some researchers have &uestioned how farmicro-$nance bene$ts women /Goet and Sen Gupta! *99@0 .Some argue that micro-$nance programmes divert the attentionof women from other more e1ective strategies for empowerment/4bdon! *99,0! and the attention and the resources of donorsfrom alternative! and possibly more e1ective means of alleviating

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poverty /Boga ly! *99@0 . %n some cases women2s increasedautonomy has been temporary. %t only bene$ts women who arealready better o1. ut in most cases the poorest women are leastable to bene$t because of their low initial resources base! lac" ofs"ill and mar"et contact.

0b%ecti-e# of the Study

The broad objective of the study is to e#amine the role andperformance of SHGs in promoting women2s empowerment in thestudy area. However! the study has some speci$c objectives. TheyareF

* . To ana lyse the economic gains der ived by the membersafter joining the SHGs.

(. To e#amine the social bene$ts derived by the members.

:. To analyse the operating system of SHGs for the

mobil iat ion of saving! del ivery of credit to the needy!management o f group funds ! repayment of l oans ! inbuilding up leadership! and establishing lin"age with ban"s

?. To suggest appropriate policy intervention for the e1ectiveperformance of SHGs.

+ethodolo(y

Selection of Study Area and Sa*ple Unit# The studywas carried out in selective clusters spread over $ve bloc"s ofGajapati district in Orissa.

%t is noteworthy to mention here that the Self-Help Groupsin Gajapati district are promoted by GOs as well as Governmentagencies. Due to time constraint the researcher has selected theSHGs promoted by a particular GO i.e.! =entre for =ommunityDevelopment /==D0. 7t present ==D is wor"ing in , communitydevelopment bloc"s namely Gumma! Bayagada! uagada! Gosaniand 3asinagar. There are ()* Self-Help Groups promoted by ==Din the $ve bloc"s /7ppendi# 5 (0. The researcher has chosen *+SHGs each f rom Gumma! Bayagada! Gosani and 3as inagardepending upon location-speci$c condition. 7s uagada bloc"has only 9 SHGs promoted by ==D! all these 9 SHGs were ta"en

for study. %n total the study covers ?9 SHGs with )++ members.

Table 1.2 Sa*plin( ra*e of the Study

loc" SHGs SHG 6embers

Gumma *+ *,+

(


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*(:?,. The highest being Bs.*9A,( in Gumma bloc" and thelowest of Bs. )A,) in uagada bloc".

Table 2.1 Structure of S5$# in the Study Area

Ite* $u**a

$o#ani

6a#ina(ar

Raya(ada

&ua(ada

0-erall

6embershipaverage/o.0

*,.++ *@.A) *A.++ *,.)@ *@.@@ *@.(@

Savings perSHG /in Bs.0

*?,*A *@*(, *:@:: A+9: (+9A *+@9:

Koan /7vg.0/in Bs.0

*9A,( *A*AA *@+?+ )A,) *(:?,

8re&uency of group meeting /percentage0FJee"lyF (, *, *: + + *+.@8ortnightly @, @) A( :, () ,:.@6onthly *+ *A *, @, A( :,.)

SourceF =ompiled by the author.

Prole of S5$ +e*ber#

The average age o f SHG members in the s tudy area i spresented in Table (.( it is observed that the average age of SHGmembers was :?.( years! lowest being :( years in Gosani bloc"and highest being :A years in uagada bloc". Begarding thecaste pro$ le of SHG members! the table shows that majority ofmembers belong to tribal community. %n Bayagada bloc" it is 9Aper cent! f ol lowed by 9+ per cent in Gumma. 4ducat iona lbac"ground of the SHG members shows that most of them areil l iterate. Only A per cent of them have studied up to primarylevel. So far as the occupation of the members are concerned!major ity o f them are engaged in agr icul tura l act iv it ies. 7sregards to average income per SHG! it was around Bs. A9*). %twas highest in 3asinagar bloc" /Bs.*++,A0 fol lowed by Gosanibloc" /Bs. 9((:0 and lowest in uagada bloc" /Bs. ,)@*0.

Table 2.2 Pro le of S5$ +e*ber#

Ite* $u**a

$o#ani

6a#ina(ar

Raya(ada

&ua(ada

0-erall

7ge /years0 :? :( :: :, :A :?.(


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demanded credit for other purposes. This percentage is highestin 3asinagar /?:.+?0 and lowest in Gumma bloc" /@.?,0. 7bout**.,@ percentage of credit is demanded for investment purposes.

7 proportion of credit was demanded by the SHG members forpayment of old debts. 7 less proportion of loan is demanded forfestival and health purposes. 8rom the table it is clear that a

larger share o f credi t demanded by SHG members i s beinguti li sed for domes ti c consumpt ion purposes fol lowed byrepayment of debts and others.

9cono*ic Acti-itie# 3o-ered by S5$ +e*ber#

Table (.? revels that most of the SHG members are engagedin the collection and processing of minor forest products. Theseproducts inc lude broom ma"ing! cashew! mahul ! turmeric!tamarind! khalli / leaf plates0! raw broom! amla! etc. Some of themembers are engaged in individual businesses l i"e preparingpic"le! bodi ! papad! haldi powder! wa#! ma"ing bags! vegetablebusiness! tai loring! pan shop! etc . They are a lso engaged in

poultry! dairy and goatery business. Some are engaged in otheractivities. 7s there is a good demand for mil" products! they arepreparing sweets with mil"! ghee! etc . and are getting goodprice. They earn about Bs. @++ to Bs. *+++ per month throughthese activities.

))


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Table 2.:9cono*ic Acti-itie# 3o-ered by the S5$ +e*ber#

Ite* $u**a

$o#ani

6a#ina(ar

Raya(ada

&ua(ada

0-erall

=ollection

andmar"etingof 6inor8orest


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SourceF 7nnual Beport of ==D! (++:-+?.

Benet# eri-ed by S5$ +e*ber#

Lar iety of bene$ ts are derived by the members of SHGs aspresented in Table (.@.

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Table 2.< Benet# eri-ed by S5$ +e*ber# =+ult ipleRe#pon#e#>

Benet# $u**a

$o#ani 6a#ina(ar

Raya(ada

&ua(ada 0-erall

Habit of

Savings

A,.?? A9.** @).(( A@.@@ )+.@@ A@.++

4conomicindependence

A+.++ A+.++ @,.++ @@.)+ @,.++ @A.:@

Self-con$dence

)*.++ ),.)@ )(.)) A).++ )+.++ )*.,?

Socialcohesion

A+.++ )+.)) A*.** @).)) ),.++ A,.*A

7ssetownership

?).:: ,(.:? (?.?+ ,?.99 ,).(( ?A.@,

8reedomfrom debt

?9.++ @@.++ A,.+) @A.++ ,9.A@ @:.:@

7dditional

employment

(*.** :(.)+ ?*.)+ :).?+ ,).9+ :).@+

oteF 8 igures in the tab le indica te percentages./Source F=ompiled by the author.0

One of the ou tstanding bene$ ts repor ted by all themembers is the development of self-con$dence /)*.,?0 ran"ed$ rst! fol lowed by savings habit /A@0! economic independence/@A.:@0! social cohesion /A,.*A0! freedom from debt /@:.:@0!asset ownership /?A.@,0! additional employment /:).@+0.

indin(# of the Study

ased on the interviews and discussions with the group

members! $eld wor"ers of the local GO and group &uestionnairesurvey results! the following $ndings emerged.

The social pro$le of SHG members indicates that majorityof members are tribal! i.e.! their overall average is @@.( per cent.The overall l iteracy rate is only A.?: per cent as against thedistrict tribal female literacy rate of *,.)) per cent.

% t i s f ound tha t the opera tional e1 ic iency and groupdynamics of the SHG is not same in a l l bloc"s. This could beattributed to several factors li"e bac"ground of SHG formation!internal problem! support provided by the promoters! e1ectiveleadership! etc.

% t is observed that the average membership in SHG wasaround *@.(@. 6embership is highest in 3asinagar bloc" andlowest in Gumma bloc". This may be due to the urban-base of3asinagar in contrast to Gumma! where 9+ per cent of membersare tribals.

The members had joined the group in order to earn moreincome! promote sav ings habits and to develop col lect iveeconomic and social activities.

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So far as the fre&uency of group meetings are concerned! itis observed that fortnightly meetings were the most common. %nGumma! Gosani and 3asinagar bloc" the SHG members arrangetheir meetings twice in a month. ut in Bayagada and uagada!the meetings are held once in a month .

The Groups maintain cashboo"s! passboo"s and attendanceregisters. The members in-charge of accounts are being giventraining in boo""eeping by the ==D. ut the member who loo"sa fter a ll these secre ta rial wor" i s not paid any $nancialincentive.

8rom the study! i t i s f ound tha t ind iv idua l memberscontr ibute Bs. *+ to Bs. ,+ per month. A+ per cent o f SHGcirculated thrift and their period of circulation was monthly.

7ccumulated savings by members to group funds per SHG wereto the tune of Bs. *+!@9:! against this loan disbursed amountedto Bs. *(!:?,.

The SHG disbur sed l oans both for consumption andproduction purposes.


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Kiteracy and numeric training is needed for the poor women

to bene$t from the micro-credit schemes.

Training in legal literacy! rights and gender awareness areimportant complements to micro-credit for theempowerment of women. The members should be given

necessary training and guidance for the successfuloperation of the group.

The members of the SHG should be more active!enthusiastic and dynamic to mobilise their savings by groupactions. %n this process GOs should act as a facilitator andmotivator.

The o1ice bearers managing the group should be givennominal $nancial bene$ts! which wil l enable them to bemore involved in the activities of the Group.

The ban" should advance ade&uate credi t to the SHG

according to their needs. Cniformity should be maintained in formation and e#tension

of $nancial assistance to them by ban"s in all bloc"s.

The procedure of the ban"s in sanctioning credit to SHGshould be simple and &uic".

6ar"eting facilities for the sale of products of SHG may becreated.


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of technology bac"-up! product mar"et and human resourcedevelopment. Hence! there is a need for the development of aninnovative and diversi$ed micro-$nance sector! which will ma"ea real contribution to women empowerment.

Reference#

7nnual Beport of ==D! (++:-(++?

osch! 4llie /(++(0! Micro-fnance: New Wine in a New Bottle, ASupplementin !ole "or #ordaid and $$#%! 6arch.

=ensuses of %ndia! = series! BG%! ew Delhi! (++*.

=heston! Susy and Kisa 3uhn /(++(0! 4mpowering Jomen Through6icro$nanceI! Cnpublished ac"ground


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Sinha, Frances 0''-1, 2Access, &se and 3ontriution of Micro!Finance in India4 Findin5s from a 6ational

Study7,Economic and Political Weekly, April +#

)"

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PaperAnantaBasudevSahooAndSandhyaRaniDas