The ‘Barefoot Model’ of economic empowerment in rural Rajasthan

ABSTRACT

Social and cultural constraints in remote rural areas alienate women and limit their human development. However, there is potential for engagement in educational and economic activities to support their empowerment and the achievement of wider development goals. I discuss the case study of the Barefoot College from India where illiterate women have been involved for over 20 years in training in small-scale solar energy technology solutions. I argue that the participation in the solar program has the potential to support women’s ‘effective’ and ‘transformative’ empowerment, as my sample demonstrates. Through the training, poor women have the opportunity to have an income, learn new skills and foster employment opportunities. The engagement with the organization also supports raising their awareness and enables them to become agents of change. By challenging intra-household dynamics and societal customs, women pursue greater empowerment. Due to its unique model, the training program that started in rural Rajasthan scaled up internationally and has been replicated in several countries in south-east Asia, Africa and Latin America.

KEYWORDS:

• Women’s empowerment
• income generation
• gender equality

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.

Notes on contributor

Giulia M. Mininni is a Ph.D. candidate in environmental politics. Embedded within the theoretical frames of women’s empowerment and sustainable development, her research draws on concepts of gender inequality and sustainability in order to understand the local impacts of the lack of energy services on women and the implications of this lack for development projects. Giulia has also a MSc in Environment and Sustainable Development at University College London and has been working on environmental justice and behavioural change programmes for Non-Governmental Organisations in the UK and internationally. She has also been working part-time as Sustainability Project Officer at Keele University on embedding sustainability in non-related subjects and organising activities, events and conferences engaging staff and students. Outside of her studies and employment, Giulia co-established the Ph.D. Forum for students in the social sciences as well as the Sustainability Research Network based at Keele University. She also assisted in the organisation of the WSEN summit in 2016 and the ECPR summer school at Keele University in 2013.

Notes

1. The literature on masculinity also emphasises how some men dislike the idea of women within their family to be empowered (Cornwall, 1997).

2. Kandiyoti (1988) also specifies that the exercise of ‘patriarchal bargains’ might vary according to status, class, ethnicity and caste (this is particularly true in India for instance); they impact women’s passive or active roles as agents of change in relations to their oppression and they are historically and geographically subject to transformation and renegotiation.

3. Keele University, the Keele University Postgraduate Association (KPA) bursary, the Santander Bank travel fund, the Athena Swan fund and the UK India Education Research Initiative (UKIERI) fellowship sponsored the fieldwork for this study.

4. The ghagra choli is a traditional dress that women wear in rural areas in northern Indian states. Women belonging to the same community wear similar dresses with patterns, colours and accessories.