I Want to Help Rural Women in India Own the Land They Work On
“In my community, women do all the farm work while the men are hardly seen.
It’s an unfortunate truth that most men have either migrated to cities in search of alternative livelihoods, have decreasing interest in farming, or have succumbed to alcoholism. Despite their hard work, only 1 in 6 rural Indian women own the land they work on.
When I meet women in the field, they often lack agency and have no place to call their own, with no rights to their parental or husband’s homes. In cases of domestic violence, they have nothing of their own to fall back on. Most feel trapped and hopeless. They lack a voice. Without a voice, they have no income or means to make life decisions or achieve long-term financial security.
As I came across more and more women suffering this fate, I knew I had to do something.”
written by Rachna Bagwan who works for Jan Sahas, an NGO partner of Womanity’s ‘Land for Women’ programme
