Gender Training in Samnapur: Moving beyond Markets, Changing Mindsets

Realizing that economic upliftment does not necessarily bring about equality in society and that true equality could come about only when patriarchy and subordination of women are questioned and countered, PRADAN is working to create awareness through its Gender Approach, to bring about a change in the mindsets of the people regarding gender roles

T he construction of the female identity in the development sector has undergone a change over the course of time. It has been a major challenge for professionals, policymakers as well as activists, to incorporate gender within the fold of development. In a strongly patriarchal society, where subordination of women is the norm, it is often tough to work for the upliftment of women or bring about a change in the mindsets of the people regarding gender roles.

The solutions offered for the upliftment of women are an extension of the capitalist mindset and in line with the modernization theory that financial productivity and independence liberates women. Whereas this can be partially true in the short term, the correlation is not sustainable in the long run. If the sole reason for a woman being treated equally in society is her income-generating ability, it would create a dependency. Such conditional change in women’s status is return-based rather than ideological, and falls rather short on the inter-sectionality of its coverage.

At a time when economic productivity acts as a commonly accepted measure of development, the Gender Approach taken by PRADAN’s team in Samnapur, sets an example of sustainable and equitable development for women. This sustainability is derived from the efforts being made to change the patriarchal, exploitative set-up by creating agency, ownership and a sense of entitlement among women.