GENDER

EQUALITY AND
WOMEN
EMPOWERMENT

Submitted by: Anand Raj

Usha Martin University, Ranchi
GENDER EQUALITY
● The process of being fair to women and men.

● It does not mean women and men being same.

● Requires equal access to resources, opportunities and rewards

by women and men.

● The protectionist approach led to gender inequality.

● India ranks 135th on the Global Gender Gap index,2022.

 INDEX OF GENDER EQUALITY
EDUCATION
It plays a pivotal role in overall development of
women and society.
Illiteracy, poverty, bad health and political
subjugation are all corelated.
Literacy rate among women is 65.46% in
comparison to 82.14% among men.
India has been able to provide access to primary
schools. But,
Quality of education and high drop out rates
remain the two main concerns.
HEALTH
Health is an important factor that contributes
to human wellbeing and growth.
Gender has become one of the determinants
in accessing healthcare facilities.
The Child Sex ratio, in 2011 was 919
compared to 927 in 2001.
It is a direct consequences of child selective
abortions.
Table 1: School gross enrolment ratios(in
percent)
  Primar   upper primary   Secondary
year y
girls boys total girls boys total girls boys total
2013-14 107.9 106.5 107.2 88.6 85.0 86.7 73.5 74.2 73.8
2019-20 103.7 101.9 102.7 90.5 88.9 89.7 77.8 78.0 77.9
2020-21 104.5 102.2 103.3 92.7 91.6 92.2 79.5 80.1 79.8
2021-22 104.8 102.1 103.4 94.9 94.5 94.7 79.4 79.7 79.6

Table 2: School dropout rates

(in per cent)
  primary   upper primary   Secondary
year
girls boys total girls boys total girls boys total
2013-14 4.7 4.7 4.7 4.0 2.3 3.1 14.5 14.5 14.5
2019-20 1.2 1.7 1.5 3.0 2.2 2.6 15.1 17.0 16.1
2020-21 0.7 0.8 0.8 2.6 2.0 2.3 13.7 14.3 14.0
2021-22 1.4 1.6 1.5 3.3 2.7 3.0 12.3 13.0 12.6
POLITICAL
EMPOWERMENT
It considers the decision making power of women
and men.
There have been several prominent queens and
leaders in India.
Nagaland elected its first woman MLA in 2023, since
it attained statehood.
India passed 73rd and 74th amendments, to provide
33% quota for women’s representation at local
self Government Institutions.
ECONOMIC
PARTICIPATION
Employment has an important role in
increasing economic participation of women.
According to the NFHS-5 survey, only 32%
married women (age 15-49) are employed in
comparison to 98% in men.
Among employed married women, 15% do
not even get paid for their services.
Only 18% of the women in India
decide solely how to use their hard-
earned cash.
 WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

Women empowerment is the most important aspect of achieving gender equality.

Women empowerment means increasing the access of women to opportunities
and resources for development.
It is aimed to increase women’s control over her decisions, body and her life.
Women empowerment is also related to relationship between women and men.
When women are empowered, whole families benefit, and these benefits often
have ripple effects to future generations.
The roles that men and women play in society are not biologically determined,
they are socially determined, changing and changeable.
KEY ISSUES
a. Education
b. Reproductive Health
c. Economic Empowerment
d. Political Empowerment
e. Personal Laws.
In Muslim Personal Law, a girl under majority can be married off without her
consent.
Polygamy and maintenance till the Iddat period are main concerns.

Inheritance is half, compared to men.

Husband can divorce wife without her consent, while this right is not available to
women
CRITICAL APPRAISAL
● Gender inequality though in retardation, still persists in the Indian society.

● Gender inequality and other forms of discrimination violate the universal

standards of justice enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human
Rights and other agreements.
● Indian Constitution has made easy for women to apply for their rights.

● The Indian Parliament enacted some special laws to deal with gender
equality and the redressal of any crime against women.

● Practices such as child marriage, child labour, and sexual violence, need to
be tackled head on.
THANK YOU