The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Hyderabad News : World Bank floored by SHGs

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Mar 14, 2007
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Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Hyderabad

World Bank floored by SHGs

M. Rajeev

A file photo of a World Bank team meeting SHG members in Ranga Reddy district

HYDERABAD: After making their mark in taking forward the thrift movement by leaps and bounds, women of Self-Help Groups (SHGs) in the State will educate and help their counterparts in the developing countries to start similar programmes, if the plans of the World Bank materialise.

According to Parmesh Shah, who heads the World Bank's projects that funded seed money to SHGs in Andhra Pradesh, several countries, including Cambodia, Vietnam and China, have expressed interest in the SHG project in the State. To begin with, the bank is planning to tap SHG women in the State to train their counterparts in Bihar, the poorest State in the country.

Mr. Shah says in the bank's weekly newsletter that till 15 years ago many rural women remained unlettered and financially illiterate, held back by deeply entrenched discrimination, child marriage, dowry system, child labour and domestic violence. Nearly 90 years since the International Women's Day was first observed, some eight million women in the rural Indian State could truly celebrate. "They have found a way to build incomes, dreams and even political influence by banding together," he said.

Economic contributors

About 6.29 lakh SHGs were leveraging US $ 2.6 billion and savings of the poor households grew to US $ 292 million while the number of households with access to credit grew to more than six million in 2006. "As of now, they are bigger economic contributors than men at least in eight million households," the newsletter says. Explaining the growth of the SHG movement that started with small loans to members, Mr. Shah said the women are currently investing heavily in education because "a landless woman does not want her child to be landless again." The number and growing economic clout of the Andhra Pradesh SHGs has lent them political influence. "No political party can ignore these people, because they are organised, have 160,000 grassroot leaders and are handling significant amounts of money," he said.

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