The Role of Non-formal Education in Empowering Women to Improve The Family Economy

Abstract

This paper intends to explain the role of non-normal education in empowering women to improve the family economy. Empowerment is an approach in which women are provided with educational or training services so that they have a set of venture capital to improve their economic conditions. This research was conducted using qualitative research methods, namely describing the phenome of the implementation of women's empowerment through non-formal education to improve the family economy as developed by Pahlawan Ekonomi (PE) in the city of Surabaya. The implication of empowering women is the acquisition of a new set of knowledge, experiences, skills, and attitudes so that participants are able to apply them in their daily lives to increase their income.
 Economic activities in the family are generally the responsibility of the husband, but not all families are able to meet their needs if they only rely on their income from the husband. Wives (women) generally only receive what their husband's income is, even though women have the potential to participate in increasing family income.
 It is time for the participation of women (wives) in improving the family economy to be developed. Women do not only depend on their husband's economic income, but on how they also play a role in supporting the improvement of the family economy. Women's participation in increasing the family economy should start from empowering women through education or training that is suitable for their situation and condition.Education that is suitable for empowering women is integrated non-formal education, namely non-formal education whose content of learning is related to the problems or needs of the families of students, namely improving the family economy.
 The results of this study indicate that the participants of non-formal education (through education and training) experienced changes in their mental attitudes and awareness of the importance of women's involvement (wives) in family economic activities. They do not depend on their husbands anymore, and they attend training in economic skills, so that at the end of the activity they acquire a set of skills that can be used to open new businesses that support the family economy.
 
 Keywords: Empowerment, Nonformal Education, Family Economy