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 GOSPEL |
Women Empowerment |
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STATUS OF WOMEN IN THE TARGET AREA
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Women from almost half the population in our country. Though our constitution guarantees equal rights and equal opportunities to both men and women, visible and invisible inequalities and inequities bases on gender persist. The report of the National Committee on the status of women in India towards equality highlighted the process of the declining status of women and pointed out that this deterioration has accelerated for the last three to four decades. The Committee has also mentioned several other disturbing trends about the status of women such as disparity in access to health care and medical services, financial dependency, and lack of accesses to get financial assistance increasing gap between men and women in literacy, education and training for employment etc. There are several other unfortunate tendencies that have been conspicuous in India regarding woman’s status such as decreasing sex ratio, increasing female infanticide and female foeticide. Malnourishment and undernourishment among girls and women, due to lower consumption of essential nutrients by girls and women and therefore proneness to diseases, higher maternal mortality rates in the lower age groups, because of inadequate health care and medical services.
India is a land of villages and it is a fact that the plight of a rural women is far worse that of urban women. In rural areas along with taking care of the household, women perform several activities both inside and out side the house which from part of agricultural production process, such as sowing, seeding, weeding, transplanting, harvesting, processing, marketing etc. The Poverty elevation is one of the Primary objectives of any country’s planning. Therefore it becomes imperative to formulate situation specific Poverty elevation policies and programs for generation of a minimum level of income for the Rural Poor.
Implies it in participation is empowerment to transfer of power to the people empowering is a development of skills and abilities of people, to enable them to manage better have say in or in associate with existing development delivery system. Some see more fundamental and essential concern with enabling people to decide upon and under take action, which believe or essential to their development. Development then is human development that enhances the participation and empowerment of the people. It has not only to do with policies and programs, but feelings, preferences and needs of people.
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RURAL WOMEN’S HEALTH STATUS
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Rural women in INDIA is among the most disadvantaged people in terms of their health status and access to accurate and appropriate health information and comprehensive, adequate and affordable health services. Sexual and reproductive health is a particular concern for rural women, as a host of social, cultural, political, and economic factors increase INDIA rural women’s vulnerabilities to pregnancy- and childbirth-related deaths and disabilities, unsafe abortion, HIV/AIDS, and reproductive cancers. Closely related to this, are the personal, relational and institutional barriers to rural women achieving their fundamental sexual and reproductive rights, their right to exercise control over their bodies and sexual and reproductive lives, which encompasses their right to decide upon such issues as contraception, marriage and abortion. Further, their overall health status is diminished by the lives they are forced to lead – lives that pivot around the harsh realities of malnutrition, illness, injury, and fatigue, frequently the consequence of long hours of demanding physical labor in unhygienic and dangerous conditions; the strains of childbirth and caring for multiple children; and not having enough to eat, which is often the result of more and better food going to male household members.
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POVERTY, ILLITERACY AND DISASTER
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Rural women’s health is compromised as a result of a web of interrelated factors operating at different levels. One can attribute the cause of death of a rural woman to hemorrhage during childbirth, but this does not get at the myriad of indirect factors that also led to her death. Poverty among rural populations has a devastating impact on rural women’s health. Many pregnant rural women cannot afford the costs associated with facility based care, travel to reach a facility or the lost income of those accompanying the woman, and so do not receive adequate care. Poverty can cause delays in seeking appropriate health services until a condition reaches its most critical stage. Poverty also plays a role in rural women being forced to partake in activities that increase their exposure to HIV and others. Literacy and education also play a role in rural women’s reduced health status. Rural women, rarely exposed to comprehensive women’s health information, do not have correct information about contraception, the importance of a skilled birth attendant, how to prevent of HIV, and a host of other important health issues.
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CULTURE AND SOCIETY
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Culture and society play a significant role in rural women’s health status and access to services. Socio cultural norms shape beliefs and attitudes and condition human behaviors in ways that can be damaging to one’s own or another person’s health and well-being. Longstanding and entrenched gender inequalities impact rural women’s health. Rural communities adhere more rigorously to customary laws and norms of social stratification that perpetuate biases against rural women – biases which impact the allocation of assets, power, rights, status, and opportunities. Rural women have less access to basic resources (e.g. social, health, educational, and agricultural service systems) compared to their male counterparts. Moreover, biases result in rural women being treated with contempt, humiliated, violated, and discriminated against, which leads to their lowered self-esteem and feelings of fear and loneliness.
The violence that many rural women face at the hands of their husbands and other family members is one of the most physically and psychologically damaging experiences faced by many rural women. The degree of acceptance of such behaviors in many rural communities, combined with the women’s powerlessness to stop such actions, including the lack of someone to turn to for help, all compound to keep rural women in abusive relationships and limit positive behavior changes on the part of men. Stressful circumstances appear to intensify the abuse of rural women. Women’s lack of decision-making power is apparent in their inability to control when and to whom they will be married. Early marriage is more common in rural areas and unfortunately this can negatively impact their health and well-being, for instance, young women in rural areas are more than twice as likely as their urban peers to be married before the age of 20 (58% versus 27%). Pregnancy often follows soon after marriage, which carries a higher risk of complications for adolescences as their reproductive systems are not fully developed. Women who marry at a young age, who often drop out of school, also have less of an opportunity to learn about their sexual and reproductive health and rights and how to access related services. With minimal education and limited access to reproductive health services, they are left on their own to manage their fertility and sexual and reproductive health and well-being. |
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