Empowerment Index Research Articles (Page 1)

Women are known to be the backward and deprived section of society. Gender inequality is a major issue across the world. The Government of India has consistently launched policies and programmes to empower women and promote gender equality through education, employment, health and participation in governance. Therefore, the objective of this study is to examine the various programmes and schemes for economic, social and political empowerment in India. The study has followed the documentary analysis method. This study is purely qualitative in nature. Data for the present study has been collected from government reports, various books, research papers, doctoral theses, national and international magazines, state reports, newspapers, websites, etc.

British Colonialism and Women's Empowerment in India

This contribution makes the 25th part of the Social Change Indicators series in which we look at the women’s empowerment indicators across various states in India.

This study develops and validates the Rural Women Agripreneurship’s Empowerment Index (RWAEI), a multidimensional framework designed to measure the empowerment outcomes of women agripreneurs in conflict-affected communities of Northeastern Nigeria. Anchored on Sen’s Capability Approach and Gendered Institutions Theory, the study assesses how agripreneurial engagement enhances women’s agency, access to productive resources, decision-making autonomy, and livelihood sustainability. Using data from 1,146 women across Gombe, Bauchi, and Adamawa States, and employing Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA) and Structural Equation Modelling (SEM), the study identifies significant empowerment pathways through mechanization, hired labour, production participation, and market integration. The RWAEI demonstrated high internal consistency (Cronbach’s α = 0.812), validating its utility for gendered rural development assessment. Findings reveal that agripreneurship significantly strengthens women’s economic inclusion and leadership capabilities, thereby promoting sustainable livelihoods and post-conflict resilience. The paper recommends integrating empowerment indicators into agricultural policy, expanding access to mechanization finance, and supporting women-led agribusiness networks to accelerate progress toward SDGs 1, 5, and 8.

Marriage, divorce, and maintenance laws in India are deeply rooted in the country's pluralistic legal framework, reflecting the diverse religious and cultural traditions. Hindu and Muslim personal laws, governed by distinct statutes and customs, exemplify this plurality. This article explores the legal frameworks governing marriage, divorce, and maintenance in Hindu and Muslim personal laws, highlighting their historical foundations, procedural aspects, and gendered implications. Marriage, as a socially sanctioned union, imposes rights and duties on spouses, influenced by customs, community traditions, and statutory laws. Divorce, historically more prevalent in Islamic traditions, is now legally recognized across religions as a remedy for irreparable marital breakdowns. Maintenance, ensuring the financial sustenance of a spouse post-divorce, varies significantly in its application under Hindu and Muslim laws, reflecting differences in religious doctrines and societal norms. The article also examines gender implications within these legal frameworks, including issues of child marriage, dowry-related violence, polygamy, and transnational marriage abandonment. While constitutional provisions like Article 14 advocate gender equality, the lived realities of women in India often reveal gaps between legal protections and actual experiences of inequality. Despite progressive reforms and feminist advocacy, discriminatory practices persist, especially within personal laws, underscoring the need for continued legal and societal transformation. By analysing marriage, divorce, and maintenance through legal, cultural, and gendered lenses, the study sheds light on the complexities of personal laws and their impact on women's rights and empowerment in India.

Objective: This study aims to analyze community empowerment through the utilization of MSMEs in the Taman Ghanjaran and Sumber Gempong Ketapanrame Trawas Mojokerto Tourism Villages based on Mardi Yatmo Hutomo's community empowerment theory indicators. The main focus of the study is to identify the role of capital, infrastructure development, mentoring, institutional strengthening, and strengthening business partnerships in improving economic welfare and village tourism attractiveness. Method: The study uses a descriptive qualitative approach with data collection techniques through in-depth interviews, field observations, and documentation. Research informants include BUMDes managers, MSME actors, community leaders, and village officials. Data analysis was carried out using the Miles and Huberman interactive model which includes data reduction, data presentation, and conclusion drawing/verification. Results: The results of the study indicate that the five indicators of community empowerment have been implemented well and are mutually supportive. Access to capital is obtained through a combination of village funds, savings and loans, and banking partnerships. The development of tourism and MSME supporting facilities and infrastructure is carried out in stages and according to needs. The mentoring program is carried out through business management and digital marketing training. Institutional strengthening is evident in the effective internal coordination of Village-Owned Enterprises (BUMDes), while business partnerships develop through collaboration with the government, the private sector, and local communities. Novelty: This research provides a new contribution by comprehensively integrating Mardi Yatmo Hutomo's community empowerment indicators in the context of MSME-based tourism villages. This approach demonstrates that the success of tourism village development relies not only on natural potential but also on structured, participatory, and sustainable empowerment strategies.

Purpose This study assesses the status of women’s empowerment in India through a multidimensional lens, analysing trends from 2005–2006 to 2019–2021 using data from the National Family Health Survey. It constructs a Multidimensional Women’s Disempowerment Index (MWDI) covering three core dimensions (decision-making, physical mobility and awareness) and investigates the influence of socio-demographic and economic factors on women’s empowerment. Design/methodology/approach Employing Alkire–Foster methodology, the MWDI is developed using direct indicators of disempowerment. A quantitative analytical approach with Heckman Two-Step Estimation identifies determinants of multidimensional disempowerment among married women aged 15–49 years, emphasizing subgroups such as Scheduled Tribes (STs), Other Backward Castes (OBCs), Muslims, and rural women. Findings Despite notable progress, 53.3% of married women in India remain multidimensionally disempowered, with restricted physical mobility being the predominant factor. Rural women, along with those belonging to STs, OBCs and the Muslim community, exhibit greater vulnerability. Education, employment, financial inclusion and mass media exposure enhance empowerment, whereas low self-esteem and spousal dominance hinder it. Social implications The findings underscore the urgency of designing intersectional and group-specific empowerment initiatives. Policies must integrate social awareness campaigns, improve access to education and financial services and address patriarchal norms through behavioural interventions – ensuring that empowerment strategies are holistic, inclusive and sustainable for gender equity. Originality/value This research addresses the limited literature on longitudinal multidimensional assessments of women’s empowerment in India. By introducing a robust MWDI it identifies persistent socio-economic disparities and provides evidence-based insights crucial for designing targeted policies. Peer review The peer review history for this article is available at: https://publons.com/publon/10.1108/IJSE-12-2024-1088

Self Help Groups (SHGs) have emerged as a powerful tool in promoting both financial inclusion and women empowerment in India. These groups typically consist of 15–20 individuals, mostly from economically disadvantaged backgrounds, who voluntarily unite to address issues related to poverty, social inequality, and financial exclusion. SHGs are formed democratically and function independently, free from political affiliations or external pressures. While SHGs can be composed of men, women, or mixed members, it is noteworthy that over 95% of SHGs in India are formed exclusively by women. This study specifically examines the impact of microcredit facilities provided by the banking sector on the empowerment of women, with a focus on SHG members in the Erode District. A sample of 100 women members from various SHGs was selected by convenience sampling to assess how effectively microcredit meets the financial needs of both rural and urban women. The findings reveal that SHGs have become a vital channel through which poor women access credit, leading to significant improvements in their economic and social status. Through participation in SHGs, women have experienced increased autonomy, greater involvement in decision-making, and enhanced recognition as active contributors in democratic, economic, cultural, and social spheres. The study underscores that SHGs not only fulfill credit requirements but also act as a platform for holistic empowerment, enabling women to uplift themselves and their communities. Keywords: Self Help Group, Inequality, Banking, Autonomy, Social Status.

Income inequality in Indonesia, remains as a serious global issue. This study is driven by the existing inter-regional disparities and the limited integration of gender indicators in inequality analysis, particularly across all provinces in Indonesia. The issue of income distribution inequality is certainly influenced by various factors. This study was conducted with the aim of understanding the effect of the Gender Empowerment Index (GEI), Human Development Index (HDI), poverty, and Domestic Investment (DI) on income inequality in Indonesia. The data in this study is secondary panel data sourced from the Central Bureau of Statistics, covering 34 provinces over the 2015-2023 period. The research method is the fixed effects model. The findings indicate that GEI does not have a statistically significant impact. On the contrary, HDI has a significant negative effect, while poverty and domestic investment have a significant positive effect on income distribution inequality. These findings highlight the need for inclusive human development policies, equitable investment distribution, and targeted poverty reduction strategies. This study also contributes by providing evidence-based recommendations to reduce interprovincial disparities in Indonesia and strengthen discussions on more equitable and fair policies.

“You can tell the condition of a nation by looking at the status of its women” – Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru Why we talk about women empowerment only and not men empowerment? Why women need empowerment and not men? Women make almost 50% of the total population of the world. Then why this substantial section of the society needs empowerment? They are not in minority so as to require special treatment. Biologically speaking also, it is a proven fact that female race is superior to male. Then the question arises that why we are debating the topic ‘Women Empowerment’.

Abstract While research on women’s empowerment in Africa has traditionally focused on education, microfinance, and the role of feminist movements and NGOs, the gendered impacts of international remittances remain underexplored. Existing studies that do engage remittances often rely on macro-level indicators or narrow outcome measures, failing to capture the multidimensional and context-specific nature of empowerment. We address this gap by providing the first micro-level and cross-country evidence on how international remittances influence women’s empowerment across 34 democratic African countries, drawing on Afrobarometer Round 7 data. We construct a multidimensional empowerment index, encompassing gender equality, economic agency, political participation, and health autonomy, using Multiple Correspondence Analysis (MCA). To correct for selection bias and account for the bounded nature of our outcome variables, we employ entropy balance with fractional logit models (EB-FLM), supplemented by Inverse Probability Weighted Regression Adjustment (IPWRA) for robustness due to it doubly-robust property. Remittances are found to significantly enhance women’s empowerment, with the strongest effects in economic, political, and gender equality domains. These effects are more pronounced among rural women and younger cohorts, while older women experience relatively greater gains in health-related autonomy. Our findings frames the impact of remittances on women empowerment as a context-dependent yet transformative channel for advancing gender equality, with implications for policies aimed at reducing transfer costs and expanding inclusive financial and social infrastructure.

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 reminds us to have a reliable indicator to track women's empowerment. Our objective was to develop a composite index from the National Health Family Survey-V India (NFHS-V) dataset, broadening opportunities for monitoring and research on women's empowerment. We also explored the association between women's empowerment and their adoption of healthier practices and utilization of health care services. We identified items related to women's empowerment from the NFHS-V dataset and used principal component analysis with varimax rotation to extract the components and confirmatory factor analysis to test the structure. We also explored the association between women's empowerment and adoption of healthier practices after adjusting for age, wealth index and residence. 19 items across six domains were selected to form the ShEPower women's empowerment Index: attitude towards domestic violence, freedom of movement, decision making, wife's right to say no to sex, ownership of land/house and social independence. Women with high ShEPower Index were more likely to use modern methods of contraception, regularly consume green leafy vegetables/fruits, sleep under a mosquito net, and were less likely to experience physical or sexual violence at home. The ShEPower Index is a valid and reliable 19-item index to measure women's empowerment. It has the potential to widen the research agenda on women's empowerment and its impact on health outcomes and monitor progress towards achieving SDG 5 targets. Women with high ShEPower score make healthier choices with regards to their diet and health.

BackgroundDespite a high disease burden, care-seeking for mental health symptoms is low in Bangladesh, particularly among women.ObjectiveTo evaluate help-seeking behaviours for anxiety and depression symptoms among Bangladeshi women aged 15–49 and its association with women’s empowerment.MethodsData from the Bangladesh Demographic and Health Survey 2022 including 2881 women reporting anxiety or depression symptoms were analysed. Help-seeking behaviours, sociodemographics and women’s empowerment using the Survey-based Women’s Empowerment (SWPER) index were assessed. Logistic regression models were used to explore associations.ResultsThe mean age of participants was 33.3 years (SD 8.7); two-thirds lived in rural areas. In the SWPER index, 83% of women had high empowerment in the attitude to violence domain, 16% in social independence and 60% in decision-making. Among women with anxiety or depression symptoms, 18.7% sought help, mainly from spouses (43%) or family (52%), and 15% consulted doctors. Women aged >30 years (adjusted OR, aOR 1.25, 95% CI 1.02 to 1.53), from rich households (aOR 1.49, 95% CI 1.09 to 1.89), and with secondary (aOR 1.47, 95% CI 1.08 to 2.01) or higher education (aOR 1.56, 95% CI 1.03 to 2.36) were more likely to seek help. High empowerment in attitude to violence (aOR 0.54, 95% CI 0.37 to 0.81) and decision-making (aOR 0.53, 95% CI 0.41 to 0.68) correlated negatively with help-seeking.ConclusionsFew Bangladeshi women seek help for mental health symptoms, relying on informal sources. Age, education, wealth and employment predict help-seeking, while high empowerment level in attitude to violence and decision-making domain of SWPER index shows an inverse relationship.

Assessing the impact of emerging technologies on women’s empowerment in India

Democracy is a system of government where citizens participate in political decision-making through freely elected representatives. To measure the quality of democracy in Indonesia, the Indonesian Democracy Index (IDI) is used as a composite indicator reflecting various aspects of political freedoms, civil liberties, and governance. The IDI score declined from 6.71 in 2022 to 6.53 in 2023, the lowest in 14 years, indicating disruption in Indonesia’s democracy. Therefore, it is necessary to identify the root causes of the disruption in Indonesia’s democracy through several indicators. This study analyzes the relationship between predictor variables, including socio-economic and development indicators, and IDI using the Multivariate Adaptive Regression Spline (MARS) approach. This study uses the MARS method by considering six predictor variables, namely the Human Development Index (HDI), Gender Empowerment Index (GEI), Information and Communication Technology Development Index (ICT-DI), Press Freedom Index (PFI), Poverty Depth Index (PDI), and High School Completion Rate (HSCR). The data used is secondary data from 34 Indonesian provinces in 2023 obtained from the Statistics Indonesia-BPS. The results showed that the best model was obtained with a combination of BF = 12, MI = 3, and MO = 1 resulting in a GCV value of 11.27 and R2 of 80%. MARS model interpretation identifies the significant influence of social and economic indicators on IDI and is able to explain 80% of data variability. The significance test shows that all predictor variables significantly affect the IDI, with the highest level of importance on the ICT-DI variable. Therefore, improving ICT-DI in each province needs to be a major concern as a strategic step to improve the democracy index in Indonesia and support the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 16 on peace, justice, and strong institutions.

Women’s empowerment plays a vital role in driving economic and social development, especially in agriculturally driven communities. In Nigeria, despite women's substantial contributions to agriculture and household welfare, gender-based constraints persist—limiting their access to productive resources, credit, and decision-making. This study explores the impact of women’s empowerment programs on livelihood outcomes in Oyo State, Nigeria. It specifically examines women’s participation in empowerment initiatives, assesses the relationship between empowerment indicators and livelihood improvements, and identifies barriers to effective participation. A cross-sectional design was employed, drawing primary data from 100 respondents—including beneficiaries of the Women Development Fund (WDF) and key informants—through structured questionnaires, interviews, and document reviews. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Version 25. Descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) and inferential methods such as multiple regression and chi-square tests were applied to assess relationships among variables and test hypotheses. The results showed that participation in empowerment programs significantly improved women’s access to credit (95.6%), savings (90.0%), and income-generating opportunities (97.8%). Positive livelihood outcomes included increased income (98.9%), business expansion (97.8%), property ownership (74.7%), better healthcare access (96.7%), and improved food security (95.6%). Regression results revealed that increased income, property ownership, business growth, and decision-making autonomy significantly influenced women’s empowerment at the 1% significance level (p < 0.01). Empowerment programs substantially enhance women’s economic independence and household welfare. Nonetheless, barriers such as limited education, financial exclusion, and cultural norms hinder full participation. Addressing these through improved financial inclusion, supportive policies, and capacity-building initiatives is essential to unlocking the full potential of women in rural development and ensuring sustainable livelihood outcomes.

Background and aims: Iron deficiency is one of the most important health issues in adolescents, especially girls. Today, empowerment is considered an effective program to change behavior in chronic disease control. This study was conducted to determine the effect of the family-centered empowerment model on the empowerment indicators of student girls with iron deficiency anemia and their mothers. Methods: This is a two-group semi-experimental study conducted on 60 student girls along with their mothers, who were selected by a two-stage cluster random sampling method. Data was collected using a demographic information questionnaire and an adolescent and mother empowerment questionnaire. The intervention based on the family-centered empowerment model was implemented for the test group, and after 1.5 months, data from both groups were collected and analyzed with chi-square, independent t, and paired t-tests. Results: The results of the independent t-test showed that there was a significant difference between the student girls in the test and control groups after the intervention in terms of empowerment indicators (p < 0.05). The results of the independent t-test showed that there was a significant difference between the mothers in the test and control groups after the intervention in terms of ability indicators (p < 0.05), while before the intervention, this difference was not significant (p > 0.05). Conclusion: The results of the present study showed that the implementation of the family-centered empowerment model not only increased the empowerment indicators of student girls with iron deficiency anemia but also had an effect on the empowerment of their mothers.

Poverty in Indonesia remains a complex macroeconomic issue, influenced by various social, economic, and regional disparities. This study employed a dummy variable regression model to analyze the factors affecting poverty more comprehensively, allowing for the identification of categorical geographic effects. This study examines the influence of the Gender Empowerment Index, Expected Years of Schooling, Gini Ratio, Open Unemployment Rate, and Formal Employment on the percentage of the poor population in Indonesia, while considering regional classifications in Western, Central, and Eastern Indonesia. The results show that the Gender Empowerment Index and proportion of Formal Employment have a significant negative effect on poverty, while the Gini Ratio has a significant positive effect. Additionally, the Western and Central regions exhibit significantly lower poverty rates than the eastern region. The dummy regression model explains 83,64% of the variation in poverty across provinces, making it a relevant basis for formulating region-specific and macro-economically informed poverty alleviation policies.

This study examines women's empowerment in India using a multidimensional disempowerment index constructed from National Family Health Survey unit-level data. Focusing on decision-making, mobility, and awareness, it highlights significant regional disparities and explores the association between intimate partner violence (IPV) and disempowerment. While overall disempowerment declined over time, women facing IPV, especially in central and eastern regions, remain disproportionately affected. The findings emphasize that regional context and IPV are critical factors influencing empowerment. Efforts focused solely on education and employment may fall short unless IPV is addressed, underscoring the need for region-sensitive, violence-informed policy interventions.

The paper focuses on the role of corporate social responsibility in community sustainable development through livelihood generation for empowering rural and marginalized women as an inclusive category to mainstream development. The Multinational Companies especially, in Indian context through CSR are found to promote the social dimension of business-society nexus. CSR often does “implicit CSR” which refers to responsibilities towards employees but “explicit CSR” brings community as stakeholder by focussing on development of health care, infrastructure, education, environment, income generation, women empowerment etc. A gender lens impact assessment of CSR has become significant to understand the discourses on parameters of community development. Odisha’s scenario of rural women’s employability reflects a meagre and underprivileged position of lack of their economic independence and corresponding social status. In this context, the present paper attempts to highlight the CSR initiatives of a Multinational company towards empowering rural women in their livelihood generation through self help group. With a primary field data being utilized in a descriptive and exploratory research design having a sample size of 100 women from 10 different SHG activities based on the CSR initiatives of Dalmia Bharat Foundation (DBF)located in peripheral villages near Cuttack, the study wishes to highlight on the indicators of women empowerment through interview schedule and focussed group discussions highlighting their nature of mobility, personality development and decision making capacity which has changed with their economic independence and corresponding social empowerment. The study has also utilized the secondary sources of data collection emphasizing the analysis of company’s annual sustainability report. The findings reveals the CSR efforts have improved the living conditions of rural women by providing them with better economic evenues and corresponding social empowerment which is observed by their enhanced mobility and decision making capacity. The research implications enable to have a deeper understanding on the discourses of corporate social responsibility, development, gender inclusion and business-society relationship. The research could suggest in policy making for gender inclusion both at the government and corporate level.