Women’s Self-Help Groups and Their Importance

SHGs started in 1989 are often groups of 8-10 women that gather once a week to collect money from their members, connect them with banks, and provide low-interest loans. Women-run self-help groups (SHGs) in India’s backward areas, on the other hand, battled COVID-19 valiantly: they produced crucial medical goods like masks, sanitizers, and protective equipment, maintained community kitchens, and offered financial assistance to the disadvantaged and communities.

Micro Food Processing Enterprises (PMFME) and Farmer Producer Organizations (FPOs) have also received financial assistance from the Union government. Government programmes have also pushed women to have bank accounts, making it simpler for SHGs to obtain loans. SHGs, on the other hand, have had positive results by reducing banks’ non-performing assets.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi claims that new changes have been included into the sustainable development model by developing a self-sufficient economy and encouraging women to explore the global market.

While more women are carving out a place in such businesses, there are still a few obstacles to overcome. Despite their scopes and capabilities, we found that certain SHGs are unable to grow into full-fledged organizations for the following reasons:

• A lack of grasp of business’s essential ideals
• Due to socio-cultural pressures, there is a lack of desire in doing business.
• Presentation abilities are lacking.
• There will be no knowledge transfer.
• Insufficient financial knowledge
• A shaky managerial structure
• The value of the United Nations-mandated Sustainable Development Goals is underappreciated.
• Marketing and advertising abilities are lacking.
• Orientations for a limited time

WOMEN SELF-HELP GROUP

Non-governmental organizations (NGOs) that have wide anti-poverty goals sometimes create self-help groups. Self-help groups are viewed as tools for achieving goals such as empowering women, building leadership skills among the poor and needy, boosting school enrollment, and improving nutrition and birth control usage. Financial intermediation is typically viewed as a stepping stone to these other aims rather than a fundamental goal. This may stymie their development as sources of village capital, as well as their efforts to federate locally managed pools of money, as credit unions have done in the past.

SHGs play a critical role in providing impoverished people with access to finance, which is critical for poverty reduction. SHGs also play an important role in women’s empowerment since they enable women from economically disadvantaged backgrounds establish social capital.

Advantages of financing through SHGs:

• As a member of a group, an economically disadvantaged individual acquires strength.
• Furthermore, SHG lending lowers transaction costs for both lenders and borrowers.
• While lenders only have to deal with a single triple SHG account rather than a big number of tiny individual accounts, borrowers who are members of a SHG reduce or eliminate travel (to and from the branch and other locations) for paper work and workdays lost canvassing for loans.
• SHGs have considerably empowered impoverished people in rural regions, particularly women, where they have been effective.
• In rural regions, SHGs have made a significant contribution to lowering the impact of informal lenders.
• Many large corporations are also supporting SHGs in various parts of India.
• SHGs assist borrowers in overcoming the lack of collateral issue. Women may talk about their problems and come up with solutions.

WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN INDIA

The word “women empowerment” refers to the power bestowed on women who share equal rights. The concept alludes to women’s freedom from socioeconomic dependency constraints. Women account for almost half of the country’s population, and the majority of them remain economically reliant on one another in the absence of work. In the age of feminism, a tiny number of women in India have gained the freedom to use their free will and carve out their life as they see fit. However, there is a significant divide among women in this country who seek positive encouragement. Women are still denied basic education in most Indian villages and semi-urban towns, and they are never allowed to continue their education after gaining the necessary knowledge.

Women are recognized for seamlessly performing several duties throughout the day, and they are consequently regarded as the backbone of every civilization. Women play a variety of responsibilities in male-dominated society, including caring moms, loving daughters, and skilled workers. The finest thing is that they are well suited for any job. Nonetheless, they’ve long been seen as a marginalized section of society in many regions of the globe. As a result, women have had to bear the weight of inequity, financial insecurity, oppression, and other societal ills. For ages, women have been enslaved, preventing them from achieving professional and personal success.

Women’s empowerment has been a hot topic in the last several years. Women’s empowerment has unquestionably become a necessity in our day. Women must have the freedom, trust, and self-worth to choose their own wants and desires. By looking at the rise of women over the previous few decades, discrimination based on gender is pointless and worthless. Women in households are paid less and regarded as cooks and slaves, and their true ability is not recognized. Women’s empowerment in India is necessary to overcome such difficulties and equip them with a self-sufficient position in Indian society.

CONCLUSION

SHGs emerge as a significant approach for empowering women and the general public while also eliminating poverty. They are an excellent technique for reducing poverty, empowering women, and promoting social justice. Women’s SHGs have raised women’s role as decision-makers and beneficiaries in the democratic, economic, social, and cultural realms of life, as well as sensitized women members to participate actively in rural India’s socioeconomic advancement. There is a lot of research on the role of SHGs in empowering women and the masses, and there is also evidence from throughout the world that SHGs assist to reduce poverty. Self-help groups are an effective way to improve women’s health by increasing their knowledge and awareness of health concerns, as well as giving financial stability during health emergencies. They are also highly active in offering income-generating activities.