Dimensions Of Women's Empowerment Research Articles

Women empowerment in Africa: can we rely on Islamic finance?

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the effects of Islamic finance on women empowerment in Africa between the periods of 1975 and 2021. Design/methodology/approach This paper uses secondary data for 27 African countries obtained from the World Development Indicators, World Population Review and the Varieties of Democracy databases. Four dimensions of women empowerment, namely, economic, social, political and household, are considered while Islamic finance is proxied by a binary variable with 1 and 0 representing the presence and the absence of Islamic finance, respectively. The two-staged least square estimation technique is used to control for the problem of endogeneity. Findings This study revealed that Islamic finance positively affects women empowerment in Africa. Specifically, Islamic finance has positive and significant effects on women political empowerment, women economic empowerment and women social empowerment in Africa but nonsignificant effect on home empowerment. These effects are more pronounced in middle-income than in low-income countries and in countries with higher penetration rate of Islamic finance. Practical implications Policymakers should put in place the necessary mechanisms for the promotion of Islamic finance such as the enacting of laws that ensures the creation of full-fledged Islamic banks, encouraging research in Islamic finance and Islamic economics. These policies should equally be backed by the creation of some accompanying measures such as the abolition of social norms that limit women’s ability to take part in decision-making. Originality/value To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study involving an Africa continent-wide analysis of the effects of Islamic finance on women empowerment.

Government’s Income Support and Women Empowerment: Regional Estimates of a Lower Middle-Income Economy

Investment in women is the smart thing to do. Pakistan has to meet SDGs till 2030, among which the 5th goal is empowering women and gender equality. We have to find the correlates that affects the empowerment of a woman to empower them. For this purpose, the current study was designed. A large sample of 12339 married women aged between 15 to 49 years was taken from PDHS 2017-18. The status of women empowerment was evaluated by formulating an index (ranged from score 0 to 10) by taking the 8 dimensions of women empowerment namely, woman’s decision making autonomy, digital inclusion, educational status, employment status, ownership of house, self-esteem, consent in choosing husband and her inclusion in financial sectors. The extent of women empowerment is observed at urban and rural areas. For analysis, ordered logistic regression technique was applied by using SPSS-23. It was concluded that as compared to women of urban areas, the women belonged to rural areas were less empowered. The disaggregated analyses showed that the determining factors of women empowerment were affecting in similar way in both urban and rural areas, except that of BISP which was increasing women empowerment in rural areas but not in the urban areas.

Can Employment Empower Women in Rural India*

The literature on women empowerment highlights a positive correlation between work and decision‐making power of women within families. On the contrary, the role of work opportunities in letting women achieve greater control over their lives, making them more independent is also well‐established. In this background, we explore the effect of women employment on different dimensions of women empowerment by using a nationally representative household survey data, the Indian Human Development Survey (IHDS‐II, 2011–12). As “empowerment” is unobservable, multi‐faceted and difficult to quantify, we model it by an index which aggregates the qualitative answers provided by a respondent. Due to the presence of an endogenous relation, we exploit sources of exogenous variations in employment through an instrumental variable (IV) setup. Following the literature, we identify IV as the level of transport infrastructure in the region where a woman resides. We find that the estimated coefficients are positive and statistically significant, remaining robust to changes in empowerment calculation. In the context of public initiatives aimed at improving female labour force participation and empowering women in India, our results show how policymakers can look beyond standard policies and take the help of transport‐related initiatives to improve employment and empowerment.

Measuring Dimensions of Women Empowerment in North-West Region of Bangladesh: A Case Study

The current study was aimed to measure the different dimensions of women empowerment and identify the factors affecting women empowerment in the North-West Bangladesh. To conduct the study, 537 female respondents who had at least one biological child aged between 6 to 59 months were selected purposively from eight districts of North-West region of Bangladesh using stratified random sampling technique. To identify the factors which influence different dimensions of women empowerment, binomial logistic regression model was used. Descriptive result showed that the overall women empowerment are 13%, where the dimension wise empowerment are (self-esteem – 36%, access to and control over resources – 24%, attitude and behaviour of husband – 48%, decisions related to household – 19%, and mobility– 12%). The factors which significantly influence different dimensions of women empowerment were exposure to media, attitude and behaviour of husband, mother’s employment, spousal age difference, mother’s education, wealth index, family religion, public speaking power, participation in community events, household size and ownership in tangible resources. The result showed that education plays a significant role to improve the level of empowerment of female respondents of NW Bangladesh. When level of education of mothers increased, the self-esteem and access to and control over resources also improved. The study concluded that as the level of empowerment of women living in the NW region are comparatively low in the context of Bangladesh, therefore to increase their empowerment, the study recommended for underlining on quality education for the respondents especially urban and peri-urban areas to move out from poverty.

Psychological Women Empowerment and Women Entrepreneurial Success: A Case Study of Micro-Enterprise in Malaysia

Women are taking on the risks and rewards of entrepreneurship in ever-increasing numbers. Existing literature suggests that women have been playing a significant part in the growth of micro-enterprise and economic development. Unfortunately, most of women failed to sustain in entrepreneurship due to psychological characteristic issue for instance lack of empowerment among themselves. As a result, there is an insistent need to investigate various dimensions of women empowerment especially in the context of micro-enterprise sustainability. Since the sustainability of micro-enterprise among women entrepreneur are still being debated among scholars, therefore the understanding on the concept of psychological women empowerment in depth is crucial. This study was conducted to investigate the role of psychological women empowerment that may assist in women entrepreneurial success. The total of 410 women entrepreneurs categorised as Low Income Household (LIH) who conducting micro-enterprise in Malaysia participated in this study voluntarily. The time horizon for the study conducted was three years. The data was analysed using descriptive and linear regression analysis. The finding obtained from this study indicated that there was significant positive relationship between psychological women empowerment and women entrepreneurial success. In addition, the findings showed that women had greater level of awareness in increasing knowledge and family welfare, financial independence and self-identity. The findings offer evidence that women in LIH engaged in entrepreneurial activities feel much empowered that lead to business sustainability. This result provides valuable insight for agencies involved in women entrepreneurship development especially on microenterprise.

Dimensions of women empowerment: A structural equation modelling approach

Study seeks to investigate the overall status of women at household level by measuring their empowerment level. The sample comprises of 250 married women from the households that were selected purposively for the study. Different dimensions of empowerment and the effect of these dimensions on the level of women empowerment is measured in the study. The study also investigates the effect of several personal characteristics on women empowerment. Using a structural equation modeling framework, women empowerment is measured along five dimensions. Study finds that among the several dimensions of empowerment Freedom of mobility and Household decision-making are the most important factors that affect women empowerment. Progressive attitude and Autonomy at parental house are the next two most important determinants of women empowerment while political participation has the lowest effect on the level of women empowerment. The study also shows that education has the highest positive influence and husband wife age difference has a negative influence on women empowerment.

Dimensions of women empowerment on access to antenatal care in Uganda: A further analysis of the Uganda demographic health survey 2016.

Women empowerment has been viewed as a good strategy in the reduction of global maternal morbidity and mortality. Most of the recent studies in Uganda have focussed on antenatal care (ANC) frequency and the associated factors with no focus on the effect of women empowerment. Our study aims at examining the prevalence of optimal access to ANC by considering the timing of initiation, type of ANC provider and ANC frequency and their association with women empowerment. We used Uganda Demographic and Health Survey 2016 data of 9957 women aged 15-49years. Multistage stratified sampling was used to select study participants and we conducted multivariable logistic regression to establish the association between women empowerment and access to ANC using Statistical package for the social sciences version 25. Out of 9957 women, 2953 (29.7%: 95% CI: 28.5.0-30.2) had initiated ANC in first trimester, 6080 (61.1%: 95% CI: 60.4-62.3) had 4 or more ANC contacts, and 9880 (99.2%: 95% CI: 99.0-99.3) had received ANC from a skilled provider. Overall, 2399 (24.1%: 95% CI: 23.0-24.6) had optimal access to ANC. Economic empowerment and exposure to media were the only women empowerment indices that were positively associated with optimal access to ANC. Other factors that were significant include; region, wealth index, age, level of education and working status. To ensure increased access to ANC, policy-makers and other stakeholders should prioritise the use of mass media in maternal health programs, equitable allocation of the limited financial resources with a focus on older, poor and uneducated women.

Women empowerment in reproductive health: a systematic review of measurement properties

IntroductionThere is a considerable dearth of official metrics for women empowerment, which is pivotal to observe universal progress towards Sustainable Development Goals 5, targeting "achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls.” This study aimed to introduce, critically appraise, and summarize the measurement properties of women empowerment scales in sexual and reproductive health.MethodsA comprehensive systematic literature search through several international electronic databases, including PubMed, Scopus, Embase, ProQuest, and Science Direct was performed on September 2020, without a time limit. All studies aimed to develop and validate a measurement of women empowerment in sexual and reproductive health were included. The quality assessment was performed through a rating scale addressing the six criteria, including: a priori explicit theoretical framework, evaluating content validity, internal consistency, and factor analysis to assess structural validity.ResultsOf 5234 identified studies, fifteen were included. The majority of the studies were conducted in the United States. All studies but one used a standardized measure. Total items of each scale ranged from 8 to 23. The most common domains investigated were decision-making, freedom of coercion, and communication with the partner. Four studies did not use any conceptual framework. The individual agency followed by immediate relational agency were the main focus of included studies. Of the included studies, seven applied either literature review, expert panels, or empirical methods to develop the item pool. Cronbach's alpha coefficient reported in nine studies ranged from α = 0.56 to 0.87. Most of the studies but three lack reporting test–retest reliability ranging r = 0.69–0.87. Nine studies proved content validity. Six criteria were applied to scoring the scales, by which nine of fifteen articles were rated as medium quality, two rated as poor quality, and four rated as high quality.ConclusionMost scales assessed various types of validity and Internal consistency for the reliability. Applying a theoretical framework, more rigorous validation of scales, and assessing the various dimensions of women empowerment in diverse contexts and different levels, namely structural agency, are needed to develop effective and representing scales.

Empowering women can improve child dietary diversity in Ethiopia.

Women empowerment is an underlying factor of child feeding and nutrition. However, the lack of standardized measurements has made it difficult to design interventions that embed women empowerment and measure their impacts. This study aimed to assess temporal trends in women empowerment in Ethiopia and evaluate their contribution towards improving dietary diversity in infants and young children. We used women and child data from the Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey 2005, 2011, and 2016, yielding a total sample of 6113 mother-child pairs. The survey-based women's empowerment index (SWPER) developed and validated for use in Africa was used to assess three dimensions of women empowerment: (i) social autonomy, (ii) decision making; and (iii) attitude to violence. We used multiple-linear and multivariable logistic regression to assess the associations between SWPER and the number of food groups consumed/and the minimum dietary diversity (MDD). To determine drivers of changes over time, a regression decomposition analysis was run. Women empowerment indices have improved over the 2005-2016 period, but a significant proportion of women had low standardized SWPER scores for autonomy/social independence (47%) and attitude to violence (49%) domains in 2016. SWPER autonomy and SWPER decision-making scores were strongly associated with the odds of meeting MDD. Changes in women empowerment accounted for 17% of the improvements in MDD between 2005 and 2016. SWPER was a stronger predictor of the change in MDD, than known predictors like wealth, child age, and urban residence. As a critical underlying driver of child nutrition, women empowerment should be boldly addressed and integrated in nutrition interventions.

GENDER INEQUALITIES AS A GLOBAL ISSUE AND ITS EFFECTS ON WORLD DEVELOPMENT

We are born in a world full of stereotypes, from the moment we are conceive both boys and girls are subjected to be a stereotype. Gender inequality has been seen in every sector and every norm of life and has a major impact on world development. Inequality is one of the most sensitive topics of all time and has an economic phenomenon that has existed in human history. Gender inequality is considered to be one of the most important issue which has been thoroughly highlighted globally and we as a nation have seen its worst impact on world development. The article is a blended study of qualitative and quantitative analysis regarding gender issues and its impacts on the development of different sectors of the world. The dimensions of women empowerment and economic development are the main focuses in this writing. The results found that women play an important role in the development of the world, either it is economic or social or political. It also found that the underdeveloped countries are facing more concerns regarding gender inequalities as compare to the developed world.

Dimensions of Women Empowerment Through Microfinance

Microfinance institutions’ plays a crucial role for the upliftment of rural women. Women are the key of a nation development. So in order to attain the development of a nation there is need to empower the women of our nation. Microfinance institutions have always seen as a tool of poverty alleviation as they provide the facility of financial services to the needy and the weaker section of the society without any collateral security. And it proved itself as a tool of poverty alleviation. Thus it also a vaccine for women empowerment. Empowerment of women can be done with the help of Self-Help-Group. Where 10-12 women form a group with same socio-economic background and they were trained, educated so they may uplift their family, their society and ultimately the nation as whole. The objective of this paper is to understand the different dimension of women empowerment with the help of microfinance. And from the study it was seen women should be psychologically, economically and Socially Empowered and it all comes with the help of microfinance. And microfinance proved that it a vaccine for the empowerment of women.

UNDERSTANDING WOMEN EMPOWERMENT IN RURAL COMMUNITIES: A CASE STUDY OF SAHIWAL DISTRICT, PUNJAB PAKISTAN

Purpose of the study: The purpose of the study was to analyze the socio-cultural constraints that affect different dimensions of women empowerment in rural areas of Punjab province. Political participation and self-esteem were taken as dominant characteristics of women empowerment among lots of variables that collectively define women empowerment.
 Methodology: A mixed-method approach was used to study different dimensions of women empowerment. A multi-stage random sampling technique was used to collect the data from 85 respondents excluding widows and divorced women. Two focus group discussions were conducted, one in each village to further understand the phenomenon or empowerment and constraints faced by women. The data got analyzed by using tables and graphs made in MS Excel.
 Main findings: Findings of the study indicate that although cultural constraints hinder the process of women empowerment a great deal, a husband's education along with a woman's education plays a significant role in women empowerment. Results showed that if the husband is more educated, women are more empowered politically and have higher self-esteem.
 Application of the study: The significant contribution of a single factor in overall women empowerment is very interesting and needs further in-depth studies on different locations. The results can contribute to policy formulation for women empowerment on a larger scale.

THE ROLE OF WOMEN EMPOWERMENT TOWARDS HOUSEHOLD POVERTY REDUCTION: EVIDENCE FROM PUNJAB, PAKISTAN

Purpose of the study: This study intends to examine the impact of various dimensions of women empowerment on multiple constituents of household poverty in the three cities (Lahore, Multan and, Rawalpindi) of province Punjab, Pakistan.
 Methodology: The primary data was gathered from a sample of 2400 married and employed females belonging to the three cities of Punjab, Pakistan. For analysis, the study develops its own all-embracing Women Empowerment and Household Poverty variables using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and examines the relationship between the empowerment of women and household poverty using structural equation modeling (SEM).
 Main Findings: The results show that women empowerment positively and significantly contributes towards household poverty reduction.
 Applications of this study: Since poverty is one of the greatest challenges that Pakistan is facing today, the need to change poor standards of living and inspiring women to contribute effectively to society through their active participation in the development process is the dire need of time. The results of the study suggest that in addition to targeting poverty directly, policies should be devised that eradicate poverty through the empowerment of women.
 Novelty/Originality of this study: The majority of the past studies have limited generalizability because they use already available surveys/published data, having limited dimensions/indicators of women empowerment and household poverty. Moreover, the past studies that have examined the phenomenon of women empowerment ignore its psychological dimensions. Therefore, because of minimal comprehensive investigation, the examination of the effect of the empowerment of women on household poverty remains a topic of interest for the researchers.

Interlinking menstrual hygiene with Women's empowerment and reproductive tract infections: Evidence from India

BackgroundBreaking the silence on menstruation is essential for women and girls to achieve and exercise their full potential. The study explores the linkages between women empowerment, utilization of hygienic methods during menstruation, and its effect on reproductive tract infections (RTI) among women aged 15–24 years in India. MethodsThe study used the fourth round of Indian Demographic and Health Survey (NFHS-4), 2015–16. The information regarding the different dimensions of women empowerment has been collected from 122,351 women at the state level. Overall, 42,912 women aged 15–24 years surveyed in the state module were questioned regarding menstruation hygiene methods and different dimensions of women's empowerment. Bivariate and multivariate statistical techniques have been utilized to draw inferences from the data. ResultsFindings reveal that about 60% of women aged 15–24 utilized hygienic methods during menstruation in India. Owning a bank account, using mobile phones, and household decision-making emerged as significant factors that lead to the adoption of hygienic practices. Lack of menstrual hygiene method was found to result in adverse outcomes like RTI symptoms (genital sore/ulcer and had genital discharge) ConclusionsThe study concludes that the different dimensions of women empowerment are essential in accelerating the level of practicing hygienic menstruation methods and providing assistance against diverse malpractices and taboos attached to it. The existing approach for the use of menstrual hygiene methods should focus on women's right to decide on their own life and health.

EMPOWERING WOMEN THROUGH MICROFINANCE: EVIDENCE FROM UTTAR PRADESH, INDIA

Microfinance initiatives play a crucial role in economic development, employment generation and women empowerment. The active participation of women in Self Help Groups (SHGs) has a positive impact on their member’s empowerment. This paper is an attempt to identify factors contributing to the empowerment of women through microfinance initiatives. This empirical analysis uses information collected through structured questionnaire, selecting solely based on their capacity to explain the different dimensions of women empowerment. Result of the study also provides more effective design for efficient microfinance initiatives among self-help group members. After analysis, the factors most contributing to the empowerment of women SHG members emerged are; Political Engagement, Mobility & independence, Economic benefits, Self confidence & Respect, relevance of education, Protest against social ills and Financial planning & control.

Women political empowerment and child health: an empirical analysis, 1990-2016

Abstract Empowering women has been presented as a key strategy to improve child health. Yet, the literature on the subject is mixed, with strong variations in measures or according to context. Additionally, most of the research focuses on social or economic empowerment at the individual level rather than on structural factors or political empowerment. In this study, we explore whether women political empowerment is associated with improved health for children under 5 years old, in comparison to socio-economic empowerment or structural factors from the sustainable development agenda. We use the V-Dem project’s Women’s Political Empowerment Index and its components, combined with selected indicators of child health from the World Bank’s World Development Indicators for 166 countries, between 1990 and 2016. We estimate random- and fixed-effects regressions for the index as a whole and its individual components against child mortality, stunting and immunization coverage, controlling for structural and socio-economic indicators. The association between women political empowerment and child health outcomes tends to weaken once country heterogeneity is accounted for. Looking at individual components of women empowerment, factors or markers of socio-economic empowerment tend to have a stronger positive effect on child health compared to more political ones, for which we found either no correlations or even detrimental links to child health outcomes. Our results demonstrate the complexity of the relations linking women empowerment and child health. Presenting women political empowerment as a whole as the solution to improved child health appears misguided. However, selected individual freedoms and markers of women socio-economic empowerment are associated with positive effects on specific child health outcomes. This calls for a more context-specific yet multi-dimensional approach to women empowerment and child health in order to provide cohesive evidence to achieve the related SDGs. Key messages The relations between different dimensions of women empowerment and child health are complex. Women socio-economic empowerment may offer better leverages than political empowerment to improve child health.

Exploring Dimension, Perceived Individual Tension and Capacity Building Measure of Women Empowerment in India

The objective of current study is to identify different dimensions of women empowerment, problems and challenges such as perceived tension of individual self -help group member in the process of women empowerment, and suggestions to improve women empowerment in the context of India. The 351 responses were collected via stratified random sampling from members of self -help groups, and an exploratory principal component analysis is undertaken to identify the number of components that underlie the women empowerment. Further, a confirmatory factor analysis is used to confirm the factors in the study. The findings indicate five broad dimensions (i.e. economic, political, social, legal, psychological), four different types of perceived individual tensions (i.e., economic, social, legal, technology-oriented learning), and four significant categories of capacity building measures (i.e. training on governance, technology-driven livelihood support, promoting networking, social justice & harmony) of women empowerment.

Impact of Microfinance on Multi-dimensions of the Women Empowerment: A Case Study of Southern Sri Lanka

This paper examines the impact of microfinance programmes on women empowerment of borrowing households of Southern Province in Sri Lanka. The women empowerment is one of major target variables in Microfinance programmes which are intended to benefit low-income people and better way to achieve Millennium Development Goals including reducing poverty, supporting gender equity. The study is based on the sample survey of 405 microfinance recipients of four national level leading institutions: Thrift and Credit Cooperative Societies, Samurdhi Banking Societies, Ruhuna Development Bank and Sarvodaya Economic Enterprise Development Societies for 2017.For analysing purpose, a comparison group has been selected from the existing recipients whom membership duration with is no longer than one year to compare their empowerment capabilities with that of existing members whom membership duration with microfinance programmes is longer than one year. Three dimensions of women empowerment: economic, socio-political and well-being of the household are used for assessing the impact. Based on data analysis, the study found that outreach of microfinance towards women is remarkably higher and it has benefited to increase the number of women ownership-business in the Province. However, these women controlled enterprises are not growing but stable and evolving with the challenge of sustainability. Integrating these findings, in regional context of Sothern Sri Lanka, it can be concluded that although the microfinance has benefited the borrowing women to enhance the well-being of their households, other two dimensions of women empowerment: economic and socio - political have not been reach as it was expected.

Impact of women empowerment on rural development in Southern Punjab, Pakistan

Women play an important role in the development of a country. In Pakistan, efforts are being made to empower women in almost every field of life but in rural areas women are still living in miserable conditions. The present study was designed to check the impact of women empowerment on rural development in district Muzaffargarh of punjab province. The data from 120 female respondents have been collected. Different dimensions of women empowerment have been measured, using Ordinary Least Square method. The analysis found that self-esteem, the power of decision making and freedom of mobility mobility were statistically significant factors showing a positive impact on rural development while control over resources was found to be insignificant. It has been suggested that adequate education and job opportunities can play a vital role in empowering the women. Moreover access to media specifically TV can also empower women in a significant way.

Empoderamiento de las mujeres rurales como gestoras de los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible en el posconflicto colombiano

La mujer rural colombiana es un agente de transformación, debido a que la estabilidad familiar depende de ella. Sin embargo, su enorme contribución ha sido invisibilizada, pues asume una carga excesiva de actividades de cuidado sin remuneración ni reconocimiento, está generalmente expuesta a padecer mayores desigualdades y violencias y su valoración social es menor que la del hombre. El objetivo de este artículo fue exaltar la importancia de empoderar a la mujer rural como gestora en la reconstrucción del tejido social en el campo. Mediante un estudio cualitativo, con entrevistas a profundidad realizadas a cinco mujeres de Boyacá, Caldas, Cauca y Cundinamarca, en torno a las dimensiones del empoderamiento de la mujer, se pudo observar que las participantes tenían un alto nivel de autonomía en las decisiones respecto a la producción agropecuaria, el uso de la tierra, la economía familiar, la salud, la alimentación del hogar y su participación en el desarrollo local. Los resultados muestran la importancia de la mujer rural como gestora para alcanzar los Objetivos de Desarrollo Sostenible en tiempos de posconflicto.