Empowering Women Through Shared Experiences
Chapin Graham July 1, 2017
When studying the economics of development, one major area that is focused on is women. When women are earning money or given some choice in how to handle the household money, they tend to focus on the needs of the children of the household. These would include food, clothing and maybe an education[1]. Within most cultures, women are the backbone of the household and being able to empower them is crucial in bringing entire households, villages and countries out of poverty.
elders.org
While it is widely agreed upon that women must be empowered in the developing world, the ways to go about it are argued greatly. There have been microfinance programs, secondary education programs and even lead by example programs. Some of the best programs educate women on how to take advantage of health care and finance whatever income the household has. This kind of education is able to empower women in important facets of life that they previously had little to no control over.
Women for Women International send aid workers to give this kind of education and see marked rises in the participation of healthcare, education and the handling of finances. This increase in participation of the experiences shared by western women was able to empower women to participate in the aspects of life that will help them to escape poverty[2].
The Harvard Kennedy School researched the effects of gender quotas in the local governments of India on the aspirations of mothers for their daughters and adolescent girls for their own careers. After two election cycles with the quota in place, aspirations for careers were much higher and girls were much less likely to want to be housewives[3]. With Indian women leading by example and showing girls that their experiences can be different from that of the other women in their village, it empowers these girls to aim higher for their own life.
newsworldindia.com.in
Many women who are oppressed and do not have much control over their own lives live in places where they might not know what an empowered woman looks like. She might not know that women control their families’ finances or that women can act as leaders. Showing these women that there are indeed women of power in the world could empower them enough to have a real influence.
While the sharing of these experiences of finance, healthcare and leadership can indeed empower women to aspire to more, one must be careful to not assume that these women want saving or that these women can take the same tools that women of the west used to become empowered and arrive at the same outcome. Experiences of women transnationally are vastly different and the political systems they exist in are also vastly different. Lila Abu Lughod asserts that just because women are veiled or exist in what a westerner would call an oppressive environment does not mean that they need to be saved, or that it is the western woman’s job to do the saving. Some women wear the veil to feel empowered in their own way[4].
While it is important to help women who need development and empowerment, it is not any help to develop a country cross-culturally and help them with the western idea of development. It is more pertinent to use a transnational approach and evaluate the differences of these women’s experiences from the western experience that is being shared. By evaluating these differences and adapting aid to fit them, the aid will be put to better use and be more accepted by the women.
With these concerns in mind, aiding women through sharing a western idea of leadership healthcare and finances, one can empower women of the developing world. By empowering these women, they can more efficiently support their households and so attempt to escape the poverty in which they live. Sharing experiences between all women, empowered or oppressed, can only spread a feeling of unity among them and empower them all to help and be helped.
Notes
[1] IMF
[2] womenforwomen.org
[3] Harvard Kennedy School
[4] Abu Lughod
Bibliography
Abu Lughod, Lila. “Do Muslim Women Need Saving?” Harvard University Press,
(2013).
Beaman, Lori, Esther Duflo, Rohini Pande, and PetiaTopalova. "Female leadership
raises aspirations and educational attainment for girls: A policy experiment
in India."science335, no. 6068 (2012): 582-586.
Revenga, Ana; Shetty, Sudhir. “Empowering Women Is Smart Economics.” Finance &
Development 49, no. 1 (2012).
Womenforwomen.org. “Annual Report” (2015).