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IWWAGE-Institute for What Works to Advance Gender Equality

Digital Solutions to Unlock the Potential of SHGs and their Federations

IWWAGE – an initiative of LEAD at Krea University – in partnership with the State Rural Livelihoods Mission (SRLM) Chhattisgarh and Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions, is implementing a project that trains women self-help group (SHG) members as Haqdarshikas to provide doorstep access to government welfare schemes using a mobile app, Haqdarshak.

A survey of 411 Haqdarshikas conducted in late 2020 revealed that while many continued to support their communities, a large number had stopped using the app, citing issues such as smartphone access, digital literacy, and low demand for services. Despite challenges, 97% of respondents reported earning income through paid work, and most remained engaged in the program, motivated by community recognition, learning, and income opportunities.

The study highlights both the potential and challenges of leveraging SHG women as digital agents for last-mile delivery of entitlements and offers insights for improving retention, support, and impact of such models.

Accelerating Women’s Access to Entitlements through Digital Solutions

In partnership with the State Rural Livelihoods Mission (SRLM) in Chhattisgarh and Haqdarshak Empowerment Solutions, IWWAGE is supporting SHG women-trained as Haqdarshikas-to improve awareness and uptake of government entitlements using a digital app.

A survey of 411 Haqdarshikas highlighted key insights on app usage, barriers to service delivery, and the impact of COVID-19. While many remained active in the field, challenges like limited digital access and low citizen demand impacted engagement. The findings inform strategies to strengthen retention, digital inclusion, and the role of SHG women in delivering social protection services.

Women and Unpaid Work

The methodology involves assessing the causal effect of switching to LPG on women’s outcomes by construction of a comparison group of households that are not eligible for or did not participate in PMUY. The study uses self-reported health status, and a time-use survey of women to measure the effect of LPG usage on time released for other activities. The results from this exercise would be used to design an experiment wherein information on long-term health benefits of LPG usage and the financial incentive under PMUY would be disseminated in randomly selected villages. This would be conducted by Accredited Social Health Activist (ASHA) workers by visiting randomly sampled households in ‘treatment’ villages on a monthly basis, and responses of women in targeted villages would be compared with those of other women at the end of a year. The study is being conducted in Indore region of Madhya Pradesh.

Women and Unpaid Work

This study builds and tests a structural model that explains observed changes in FLFP using data on urban, married women from the Time Use Survey (1998) and various rounds of the National Sample Survey (NSS). The model focuses on women’s work participation, educational attainment, other characteristics, and time spent in the labour market, home production, and leisure.

Women and Unpaid Work

This factsheet is based on a study by IWWAGE and the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), which evaluates multiple constraints on female labour force participation (FLFP) within a macroeconomic framework. Using data from the Time Use Survey (1998) and National Sample Survey (NSS) rounds, the study develops and tests a model to explain changes in FLFP among urban, married women. It focuses on women’s work participation, education, and time spent in the labour market, home production, and leisure, providing valuable insights to inform better policy decisions.

Women and Unpaid Work

This factsheet highlights a study by IWWAGE and the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) focused on the barriers rural households face in switching from traditional cooking fuels to LPG. Conducted in the Indore region of Madhya Pradesh, the study assesses the health and time-use impacts of LPG adoption among women, while also examining the effectiveness of information campaigns on promoting LPG use. The results will inform the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas’ efforts to encourage safer cooking practices, with data collected through time-use surveys and health assessments to measure the benefits of LPG for rural women.

Women in Agriculture

This factsheet presents insights from an IWWAGE and Indian Statistical Institute (ISI) study exploring the impact of structural transformation in agriculture on female employment, with a focus on women farm managers. Using data from the India Human Development Survey (2004-05, 2011-12), the study examines the rise in female farm management, its demographic variations, and key differences between households managed by men and those managed by women. The findings aim to shed light on the evolving role of women in agriculture and its implications for employment.

Digitisation of Self-Help Groups in India

Self Help Groups (SHGs) have become essential for empowering women in India. Digitisation of SHG processes can streamline operations, addressing challenges like inefficient monitoring, data fragmentation, and capacity-building gaps. The Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana-National Rural Livelihoods Mission (DAY-NRLM) and its state chapters have made significant progress in this area.

This report provides an assessment and roadmap for State Rural Livelihoods Missions (SRLMs) to digitise SHG processes effectively. It highlights current initiatives, identifies gaps, and suggests ways to address them. While Management Information Systems (MIS) have been digitised to some extent, many SRLMs face challenges such as resource shortages and limited IT capabilities, which hinder progress. Additionally, SHGs often lack clarity on the benefits of digitisation, leading to low community ownership.

Most programmes rely on manual data entry, with few using digital tools at the ground level. SHG members and stakeholders beyond SRLMs and banks have limited access to the data. Improved data quality and use are essential for better financial outcomes for SHGs.

Digital linkages for livelihoods and markets are underdeveloped, with innovations remaining small and context-dependent. Additionally, digital platforms for learning are underutilised due to limited smartphone and internet access in rural areas.

The success of digitisation initiatives depends on partnerships between implementing agencies and Technology Service Providers (TSPs). Flexible models, like those seen in Andhra Pradesh and Jharkhand, offer promising examples for the future.

Addressing these challenges will be crucial for the long-term success and sustainability of SHG digitisation efforts.

Identifying Gaps in Gender Statistics In India

Women are key agents of change, and a move towards gender equality translates into increased economic empowerment for women; it also brings greater benefits for the society at large. As pointed out by McKinsey Global Institute, the economic impact of achieving gender equality in India is estimated to be US$700 billion of added Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by 2025. But achieving gender equality necessitates measures to correct for existing disadvantages that prevent women from accessing productive opportunities. Gender data play an important role in this regard.

This study is an attempt to outline the existing gaps in available official data sources in India. The study has identified data gaps in key domains of women’s empowerment, namely, employment and wages, ownership of assets, access to basic amenities, financial inclusion, health, education, access to digital platforms, participation in decision making, and crime and violence, etc. The study highlights the need for more regular surveys on employment and wages, and time use surveys to better capture women’s paid and unpaid work, and also time spent on different unpaid activities. A multi-causal approach to data collection on migration, on earnings of the self-employed as well as on ownership and management of assets and businesses, at the individual level, is also recommended. Besides, a cohort study of young women, behavioural aspects, norms and opinions around women’s work, as well as data on mental health, learning outcomes, violence and individual access to digital resources, would provide a range of measures to investigate the issue of women’s empowerment.

 

Women’s Employment Within an Entrepreneurship Model

The recently released strategy document by NITI Aayog, ‘Strategy for New India @ 75’, recognises the declining female labour force participation rates in India in the last decade as one of the major constraints facing Indian economy. The document recognises the importance of increasing women’s labourforce participation rates for a sustained process of economic growth and proposes to increase women’s employment by encouraging entrepreneurship among women. The strategy proposes to increase women’s engagement in small businesses, micro, small and medium enterprises by facilitating easy access to skill training and credits at lower rates of interest and also touches upon the need for capacity building for women in SHGs in order to successfully implement the proposed business model. It is in this context, the Initiative for What Works to advance Women and Girls in the Economy (IWWAGE) and the Institute of Social Studies Trust (ISST) hosted a half-day roundtable on 21 January, 2019 at the Willow, India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The event was intended to be a starting point for a platform which would bring together individuals from different sections of the development sector in India, including academicians, researchers, practitioners and corporations to encourage deliberations, collaborations and device future strategies for making entrepreneurship model work towards improving women’s employment opportunities.