Altering the approach to empower women in rural India

There is wide gap between the two Indias- the constantly developing India and the one which is still under the clutches of extreme poverty. As women in the former are persistently growing; the women in the latter are still struggling for basic human rights.

The founder of The George Foundation (TGF), a non-profit organization based in Bangalore, Dr. Abraham George is an Indian-American businessman, academic, and philanthropist. At the conference on empowerment of women in developing countries, in Santa Fe, New Mexico, he delivered a speech regarding the state of women in rural India.

According to Dr. George, all the money that is loaned to NGOs and governments, hardly ever reaches the women in need. He says, “Unbearable bureaucracy, terrible inefficiency, and corruption at all levels of the government have wasted much of the money allocated to rural development. Furthermore, the local officials who manage projects that target women do not themselves believe in the potential of women.”Dr. George believes that to change this, we need to change the way we approach this problem.

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Women in rural regions have no personal financial income and are hardly involved in any financial decisions. This often leaves women powerless in the society with no voce of their own, especially in terms of child bearing. Empowering women means providing them economic opportunity, social equality, and personal rights. Dr. George suggests that the only way of successfully empowering women is to educate both men and women into realizing the contribution of females in the society.

The best way to help women is through education. Teaching both girls and boys together about women’s rights, helps the generation grow up with mutual respect for both the genders. Dr. George concludes by saying, “Birth control and reproductive health of women are behavioral issues affected mostly by economics, access to health care, and education. Until this reality is accepted, the desired changes may not be attainable in the foreseeable future.”

ORIGINAL SOURCE: The George Foundation

http://www.tgfworld.org/critical-women.htm