Women Empowerment as a Tool to Attain Sustainable Development Goals: A Study of a Remote Area of West Bengal, India

Introduction

The increasing degradation of the mother nature has opened the opportunity for a comprehensive development of all its associated domains that not only limit to biodiversity and ecological development but also extends to social equity, growth of different forms of organizations and the effects of economic policies on the community. The onus of achieving the three-fold sustainable development goals of Economic Viability, Environmental Protection and Social Equity is on our own behavioral prudency. A sustainable route of development can be reached only when the interests of both men and women are taken into consideration in the allocation of resources by giving women and men the equal possibilities, including in decision-making in all sorts of activities. Amidst the converging crises of COVID-19, the climate catastrophe, and increasing levels of political and economic instability, advancements in gender equality have not only stagnated but have even started to regress. Depending on the employment information and patterns from gender-disaggregated unemployment surveys in the US and India, in the year 2020, McKinsey Global Institute calculates that the global job loss rates for women as a result of COVID-19 are approximately 1.8 times greater than those for males, at 5.7% and 3.1%, respectively (Madgavkar et. al., 2020). The COVID 19 pandemic has extended the time required to reach gender parity from 99.5 years to 135.6 years, according to the Global Gender Gap Report (World Economic Forum, 2021).Thus, it is high time that we realize the importance of striving to accomplish the goal set by The UN Member States as 2030 deadline for achieving gender equality and the empowerment of all women in the Sustainable Development Agenda, which was adopted in 2015(Our World in Data team, 2023).

The empowerment of women is highlighted in this chapter as a crucial step towards achieving gender equality and, consequently, sustainable development. A “multi-dimensional” social process helps people gain control over their own lives and it is the concept of empowerment (Warth, L. and Koparanova, M., 2012). It is a process that helps people develop power—that is, the ability to apply—for use in their own lives, in their communities, and in society by acting on issues that they deem significant. The continuation of women's disadvantage over men serves as the backdrop for this paper's examination of women's empowerment. This drawback is evident in the underprivileged sections of the society residing at Debanandapur village and adjacent areas, a tribal village in the district of Birbhum, West Bengal, India. With a sex ratio of 950 females per 1000 males in the state of West Bengal, India (Census of India, 2011), it is evident that the prosperity largely depends on women population, this chapter wants to analyze in terms of women empowerment which can lead to their sustainable development and their contribution towards the gender equality resulting into overall development of the community.

In their journey some common facility centers, training programmes are set up in association with Backward Classes Welfare Department, Tribal Welfare Department, Govt. of West Bengal to train them for making and promoting handicrafts which also in turn will lead to a sustainable livelihood, economically and socially of those women of this area. This chapter gives an overview of their status in society and in their families and whether they are equipped with the knowledge of health, hygiene, environment protection and sustainability. For this study, a detailed survey of the 150 women in the selected area is done to understand their basic characteristics and how their activities are interconnected with their economic viability, environmental protection, and social equity.