Recasting Citizenship for Development - File UPI

15
SHGS as Change Agents in Enhancing
the Political Participation of Women
in Local Self-Governance
Mandakini Pant
INTRODUCTION
Agency is the ability to define needs and priorities and to act upon them.
In this chapter, agency refers specifically to women’s political participation
in decision-making to articulate their rights, entitlements and provision
to basic services. Political restructuring and affirmative action have
given rural women an opportunity to participate in political decisionmaking.
Not only do they have one-third membership, they are also chairpersons
in one-third of panchayats. As gram sabha members, they can
actively put forward their concerns in the gram sabha meetings and influence
policies in their favour. However, despite the statutory provision
for the mandatory participation of women in Panchayati Raj Institutions
(PRIs) as elected representatives and as gram sabha members, they are
unable to participate effectively in the public decision-making process.
Enhancing the participation of women in PRIs, therefore, calls for alternative
organisational forms, such as the grassroots women’s collectives.
The Self-Help Groups (SHGs), as the grassroots collectives of poor marginalised
women organised to act for their own development, assume
importance in this context. There are a few cases where women’s SHGs
have been successfully mobilised to participate in the local governance
processes and institutions. The results clearly indicate that these groups
have the potential to work cohesively over issues concerning women, as