Women empowerment refers to making women powerful to make them capable of deciding for themselves. Women have suffered a lot through the years at the hands of men. In earlier centuries, they were treated as almost non-existent. As if all the rights belonged to men even something as basic as voting. As the times evolved, women realized their power. There on began the revolution for women empowerment.
As women were not allowed to make decisionsfor them, women empowerment came in like a breath of fresh air. It made them aware of their rights and how they must make their own place in society rather than depending on a man. It recognized the fact that things cannot simply work in someone’s favor because of their gender. However, we still have a long way to go when we talk about the reasons why we need it.
Need for Women Empowerment
Almost every country, no matter how progressive has a history of ill-treating women. In other words, women from all over the world have been rebellious to reach the status they have today. While the western countries are still making progress, third world countries like India still lack behind in Women Empowerment.
In India, women empowerment is needed more than ever. India is amongst the countries which are not safe for women. There are various reasons for this. Firstly, women in India are in danger of honor killings. Their family thinks its right to take their lives if they bring shame to the reputation of their legacy.
Moreover, the education and freedom scenario is very regressive here. Women are not allowed to pursue higher education, they are married off early. The men are still dominating women in some regions like it’s the woman’s duty to work for him endlessly. They do not let them go out or have freedom of any kind.
In addition, domestic violence is a major problem in India. The men beat up their wife and abuse them as they think women are their property. More so, because women are afraid to speak up. Similarly, the women who do actually work get paid less than their male counterparts. It is downright unfair and sexist to pay someone less for the same work because of their gender. Thus, we see how women empowerment is the need of the hour. We need to empower these women to speak up for themselves and never be a victim of injustice.
How to Empower Women?
There are various ways in how one can empower women. The individuals and government must both come together to make it happen. Education for girls must be made compulsory so that women can become illiterate to make a life for themselves.
Women must be given equal opportunities in every field, irrespective of gender. Moreover, they must also be given equal pay. We can empower women by abolishing child marriage. Various programs must be held where they can be taught skills to fend for themselves in case they face financial crisis.
Most importantly, the shame of divorce and abuse must be thrown out of the window. Many women stay in abusive relationships because of the fear of society. Parents must teach their daughters it is okay to come home divorced rather than in a coffin.
Women’s empowerment is the process of empowering women. Empowerment can be defined in many ways, however, when talking about women’s empowerment, empowerment means accepting and allowing people (women) who are on the outside of the decision-making process into it. Women’s empowerment is the most crucial point to be noted for the overall development of a country. Many people think that the days of women fighting for their rights are over but those people are wrong because one out of every three women have been public ally sexually harassed by random men they don’t know. Every day women are put down and told how to act and that they were asking for it if you wear that making woman feel that it is their fault, it is not. Many celebrities are all for girl power such as Liza Koshy and Lilly Singh (who has her own late night show and has won many awards and also raised money for #girllove and other charities) “This puts a strong emphasis on participation in political structures and formal decision-making and, in the economic sphere, on the ability to obtain an income that enables participation in economic decision-making.”Empowerment is the process that creates power in individuals over their own lives, society, and in their communities. People are empowered when they are able to access the opportunities available to them without limitations and restrictions such as in education, profession and lifestyle. Feeling entitled to make your own decisions creates a sense of empowerment. Empowerment includes the action of raising the status of women through education, raising awareness, literacy, and training. Women’s empowerment is all about equipping and allowing women to make life-determining decisions through the different problems in society.
Alternatively, it is the process for women to redefine gender roles that allows them to acquire the ability to choose between known alternatives whom have otherwise been restricted from such an ability.There are several principles defining women’s empowerment such as, for one to be empowered, they must come from a position of disempowerment. For example: A stripper no longer has to take off her clothes to get money and now is a receptionist for a respectable company. Empowerment stems from self respect. Furthermore, one must acquire empowerment themselves rather than have it given to them by an external party. Other studies have found that empowerment definitions entail people having the capability to make important decisions in their lives while also being able to act on them. Lastly, empowerment and disempowerment is relative to other at a previous time; therefore, empowerment is a process, not a product.
Women empowerment has become a significant topic of discussion in developmentand economics. It can also point to the approaches regarding other trivialized gendersin a particular political or social context.
Women’s economic empowerment refers to the ability for women to enjoy their right to control and benefit from the resources, assets, incomeand their own time, as well as the ability to manage risk and improve their economic status and well being.
While often interchangeably used, the more comprehensive concept of gender empowerment refers to people of any gender, stressing the distinction between biological and gender as a role.
Entire nations, businesses, communities and groups can benefit from the implementation of programs and policies that adopt the notion of women empowerment.Empowerment of women is a necessity for the very development of a society, since it enhances both the quality and the quantity of human resources available for development Empowerment is one of the main procedural concerns when addressing human rights and development.
Women’s empowerment and achieving gender equality is essential for our society to ensure the sustainable development of the country. Many world leaders and scholars have argued that sustainable development is impossible without gender equality and women’s empowerment Sustainable development accepts environmental protection, social and economic development,and without women’s empowerment, women wouldn’t feel equally important to the process of development as men. It is widely believed that, the full participation of both men and women is critical for development. Only acknowledging men’s participation will not be beneficial to sustainable development. In the context of women and development, empowerment must include more choices for women to make on their own. Without gender equality and empowerment, the country could not be just, and social change wouldn’t occur. Therefore, scholars agree that women’s empowerment plays a huge role in development and is one of the significant contributions of development.
Eduindex News 