How NGOs Are Empowering Women’s Rights in India: Roles, Challenges, and Impact

Women in India still struggle to combat discrimination, inequality, and violence. Even though the country has seen significant progress in these dimensions, the struggle still persists. That is where women NGOs help come into the picture.

The Non-Governmental Organizations educate women and help them fight for their rights. This is not it; the role of NGOs extends far beyond this. In this blog, let us have a brief look at the role and challenges of NGOs associated with women's empowerment.

The significant contributions of NGOs in encouraging women's rights are more than what people know. The work towards several aspects of the development includes legal, economic, education, social, and medical. Some of these dimensions are articulated as follows:

Many NGOs working for women offer free legal aid to the victims of dowry harassment, domestic violence, gender-based offenses, and workplace discrimination. Some even run crucial campaigns for policy changes, whereas some organize workshops to help women with legal literacy and understanding of their legal rights.

Several NGOs proactively educate and promote women's nutrition, health, reproductive rights, and menstrual hygiene. This helps communities understand the gravity of the situation and act accordingly. Another important area of work involves NGOs supporting pregnant and lactating mothers—organizing anemia screening camps, offering guidance on proper nutrition, and promoting the healthy development of both mother and child.

NGOs facilitate the creation of cooperatives, SHGs (Self-Help Groups), and micro-enterprises to help women attain financial independence. They help them access training, credit, and markets.

A good education is the basis of women's empowerment. Several NGOs work to educate girl children even in rural areas. While some offer scholarships for the same, some focus on skill development, like computerization, tailoring, and entrepreneurial skills, to help females achieve independence.

NGOs lead justice campaigns against child marriage, discrimination, and gender-based violence. These organizations leverage community dialogues, media advocacy, online campaigns, and street theatre to encourage gender equality. 

NGOs proactively participate in promoting women's rights in India. However, these organisations encounter several challenges along the way. Some significant challenges are as follows:

In India, conservative practices and patriarchal values are deeply rooted in the system. This is especially the case in rural areas where many women and the local communities restrict NGOs' attempts to promote women's rights. This challenge is a bit difficult to resolve and will take considerable time and effort.

A lot of times, women employees in NGO may receive threats when working in traditional settings. Keeping them safe is a psychological and practical challenge that NGOs often come across. This is particularly the case when staff and volunteers deal with sensitive topics like trafficking or domestic violence.

Many Non-Governmental Organizations work on a tight budget. Moreover, they struggle to maintain a permanent source of income or funding. The lack of a proper budget can disturb the magnitude and continuity of long-term programs.

Legal concerns and bureaucratic procedures can disturb the pace of the overall project by pressuring resources. A lot of times, NGOs or such organizations working at the base level cannot deal with such concerns.

NGOs play a crucial role in promoting women's rights in the country, particularly when governmental and authorized private bodies fail to do so.