womens self help group movement and its impact on the status of women

In the early decades of planning problems of women were looked upon as problems of social welfare,

rather than of development. The drawback of the welfare approach was that it did

nothing to eliminate the social discrimination against and subordination of women. In

almost all plans for poverty alleviation and social change, disadvantaged women became a

’target’ in developmental activities rather than a group to be co-opted as active participants.1

Since 1970, policymakers and academicians started thinking as to how development programs

could be linked to poor women. Women’s issues are development issues and by-passing

them in development programs means leaving almost half of human resources

outside

development into prevention