COMMUNITY STRUCTURES ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT

1. COMMUNITY STRUCTURES ON WOMEN EMPOWERMENT Training Toolkit for Engineers

2. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Formulation of Objectives & Strategies Community participation for development are the strategies adopted to realize this goal. Mobilisation of Resources The functionaries of the Urban Community Development Societies (CDSs) of Kerala believe that dearth of innovative and workable ideas are a bigger problem for poverty reduction than scarcity of resources. The CDS system of the state functions like a convex lens, converging the resources of all the line departments and organisations engaged in implementation of poverty reduction programmes Training Toolkit for Engineers

3. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Process • The guiding slogan of the CDS movement is reaching out families through women and reaching out community through families • Grass root level Neighbourhood Group (NHG) are formed consisting of 15 to 40 adult women, representing each BPL family of the locality • At the ward level the NHGs are federated into Area Development Society (ADS). Again at the urban local body level ADSs are federated to Community Development Society (CDS). Training Toolkit for Engineers

4. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Process • CDS system function as open forums for the poor women to express their anxieties, aspirations and ideas. Through the CBOs the poor women get empowered and they muster enough courage to fight poverty and atrocities against them. • The micro plans of various NHGs are combined at ADS level to form mini plans and at the CDS level for forming the anti poverty sub plans of the urban local bodies. • The urban CDSs of Kerala give paramount importance for micro enterprise development. Training Toolkit for Engineers

5. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Results Achieved • The CDS structure has brought about a sea change in the lives of the urban poor of Kerala. • Community mobilisation : The poor women of the local body have formed 7,848 NHGs • The poor women’s bank : NHGs formed under Kudumbashree also act as ‘Thrift and Credit Societies’ (T&CSs) which facilitate savings to be given as loan for income generation needs • Innovative enterprise development & economic empowerment:- Micro Enterprise promotion is given prime thrust in CDS model of urban poverty alleviation. Training Toolkit for Engineers

6. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Results Achieved • Women Empowerment : The giant leap made in the areas of women empowerment speaks a lot about this CDS model • Convergence:- CBOS of the CDS model act as the “launch vehicles” for the developmental activities of various government departments. Training Toolkit for Engineers

7. Urban Community Development Society (CDS) Results Achieved • Remedial Education Centres (RECs):- The urban CDSs of Kerala run remedial education centers for helping out the poor students in public examinations. • Change in attitude and approach: - Now the urban poor of Kerala, especially women view life with more optimism and they participate in developmental and income generation activities with great enthusiasm. Training Toolkit for Engineers

8. Urban Basic Services for the Poor (UBSP) Strategy • As part of the Urban Poverty Alleviation Program, UBSP specifically addresses the needs of women and children, the most vulnerable and affected by poverty, with a clear principle of women's participation • In many cities, federations of NHCs have formed Community Development Societies (CDS) at ward or city level. Within this framework, a systematic bottom-up planning process with the women begins. The "mini-plans" (prepared at the NHC level) are area-specific plans based on an assessment of felt and perceived needs. The consolidation of these plans results in a city plan, initially, for the project areas. Training Toolkit for Engineers

9. Urban Basic Services for the Poor (UBSP) Achievements • The force of Resident Community Volunteers in UBSP has increased from a handful lot to a number of 1,00,000 • Reports indicate that in at least 15 States the women are actively involved in the process of identifying needs, prioritizing them, planning, mobilizing resources and supporting actual implementation • In 11 States formation of Thrift and Credit Societies or other community revolving funds is underway • Virtually all the RCVs have been trained at least twice in specific skills and information related to basic needs, their rights and specific services. Training Toolkit for Engineers

10. Swaran Jayanti Shahri Rozgar Yojna (SJSRY) • The three Urban Poverty Alleviation Schemes, namely Urban Basic Services for the Poor (UBSP), Nehru Rojgar Yojana (NRY) and Prime Ministers Integrated Urban Poverty Eradication programme (PMI UPEP) have been dovetailed in a new scheme namely Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rojgar yojana (SJSRY) with effect from 1.12.97. • The Swarna Jayanti Shahari Rojgar Yojana (SJSRY) consists of two special schemes, namely (i) The Urban Self Employment Programme (USEP) (ii) The Urban Wage Employment programme (UWEP Training Toolkit for Engineers

11. The Urban Self Employment Programme (USEP) This programme has three components :- • Assistance to individual urban poor beneficiaries for setting up gainful self-employment ventures. • Assistance to groups of urban poor women for setting up gainful self-employment ventures. This sub-scheme has been titled as "The Scheme for Development of Women and Children in the Urban Areas (DWCUA)". • Training of beneficiaries, potential beneficiaries and other persons associated with the urban employment programme for upgradation and acquisition of vocational and entrepreneurial skills. Training Toolkit for Engineers

12. The Urban Self Employment Programme (USEP) Target Group • The programme targets the urban poor, defined as those living below the urban poverty line, as defined from time to time • Special attention is given to women, persons belonging to scheduled Castes/Tribes, disabled persons and other such categories as may be indicated by the Government from time to time. Training Toolkit for Engineers

13. View of a typical slum The Urban Wage Employment Programme (UWEP) This programme seeks to provide wage employment to beneficiaries living below the poverty line within the jurisdiction of urban local bodies by utilizing their labour for construction of socially and economically useful public assets. A new component of Information, Education and Communication (IEC) has been evolved under SJSRY with a view to play an effective role in coordination and organizing training, monitoring, evaluation, dissemination of information etc. Training Toolkit for Engineers

14. The Urban Wage Employment Programme (UWEP) • Interested women as per their needs are encouraged to form Self Help Groups and make monthly savings of a fixed amount • The Varied IGA activities under SJSRY that have been initiated by DWCUA groups or by Individuals just shows that when the gateway of opportunities is opened for the poor through skill upgradation trainings and provision of loan then there are many among the urban poor who can have their own enterprises. You have just to see to believe the success of this scheme. Training Toolkit for Engineers