Social Work In Livelihoods And Social Entrepreneurship Sociology Essay

Social Work In reinforce workforcets And Social Entrepreneurship Sociology EssayLivelihood in every day discourse refers to the means by which volume make a living it is the means to secure the grassroots necessities of life. A animation comprises the capabilities, additions and activities ask for a means of living (DFID, 1999). The UK Department of global Development (1999) United Nations Development Programme (2010) adopts the definition given by Chambers Conroy (1991)A Livelihood comprises the capabilities, assets (including both material and social resources) and activities questd for a means of living. A upkeep is sustainable when it arse lintel with and recover from stress and shocks and maintain or enhance its capabilities and assets both without delay and in the future, while not undermining the natural resource base.People need a range of sustainment assets to achieve positive livelihood outcomes and no single category of assets on its own is sufficient to y ield each(prenominal) the mankindy and varied outcomes that citizenry check outk. (The Sustainable Livelihood Framework, DFID). This framework identifies quintet main with child(p)s or asset categories upon which livelihoods ar built (Human uppercase, Social capital, inherent capital, Physical capital and financial capital), possession or right to occasion and manage these assets is necessary for a positive livelihood outcome of an singular or base. The ability to price of admission, rule, and own prolific livelihood assets such as world, labour, finance, and social capital urge on pile in creating firm and productive livelihood outcomes (Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011). Assets put up a constructive impact on livelihood security, it affects livelihood through different channels. Assets may havely impact rise up beingness through the increased status and empowerment that asset leadpower conveys facilitate different members of the crime syndicate to opt different l ivelihood strategies provides a guard net against shocks and reinforces folk members positions in the broader community and in stead the ho theatrical role attain in terms of decisions over how income is used up or invested (Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011). The mannequins of asset ownership argon integral to livelihood choices that decide how commodities be tradeed or consumed inwardly a house intromit. Assets rear be used in varying slipway to generate income through rents, interest on savings, and profits in barter activities, assets withal make possible participation of the idiosyncratic or place in financial markets, deal banking facilities which can be used as collateral for credit. (Swaminathan et al. 2012). The break of assets is significant since it can be sold or used as a security for credit to survive with the unsought or unwanted effects of stinting shocks. By providing aid to income diversification of a home plate, assets alike reinforce households capacity to deal with, and counter proscribe shocks (Quisumbing, 2008, Cited in Swaminathan et al. 2012). When it comes to women, As ethnicly based expectations of the roles, responsibilities and behaviours of women and men argon charge to men and women in the society, and as society sees women primarily in sexual activity stereotyped roles, it is chief(prenominal) to analyse livelihoods from a gender perspective and to see how far women argon able to plan of attack these resources to sustain their livelihood.In universal, men and women have different levels of control and assess to the resources required for livelihood. Womens work choices are to a great extent limited by a six-fold factors such as access to education, family expectations, gendered roles and responsibilities and the over altogether livelihood feeler of the household (Basu and Thomas 2009). Gender inequality is present and apparent throughout unquestionable and developing societies in varying forms and degrees. Wo men in general and poor women in particular, are underprivileged of basic economic opportunities and rights which are super acidly in stock(predicate) to men. thither populate a heavy(a) inequalities and disparities between men and women in terms of access to basic facilities, such as nutrition, health and education, as well as access to employment and possession of heterogeneous income generating resources (Chavan 2008). non and unequally distribution of assets between rich and poor exist, in that status exist an unequal distribution of assets between men and women, at the national level as well as within communities and households (Deere and Doss, 2006, cited in Meinzen-Dick. et al, 2011). explore shows that within households, assets are not always pooled, but rather can be held individually by men, women, and children (Haddad et al. 1997, Cited in Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011, p 3). Who within a household has the access to which resources and for what purposes is determine d both by the larger socio cultural context and by intra household distribution regulations (Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011). Different allocation of the resources among man and women is determined by the larger socio cultural context, and women in general are deprived of economically productive resources. Asset ownership by women can have a positive impact on their status and dicker power, and thereby enhance individual and household well-being (Swaminathan et al. 2012, p 60). opus women may have greater ownership of certain types of assets as compared to men, a growing body of empirical evidence shows that women typically have less overall assets than men (Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011, p 4). Agriculture is one of the major sources of livelihood for m each man and women in many developing countries. It is a critical productive asset in agrarian country, on the other hand, women are deprived of ownership rights and control land and lesser number of women has direct access to land in their own right (Velayudhan 2009). In India, landownership by women is not more than 2% (Agarwal, 1994, Cited in Velayudhan 2009, p 74). An Inter-national Centre for search on Women (ICRW, 2006) hit the books found that of 402 surveyed women in Kerala, 36% owned airplane propeller (land or house) while in West Bengal, this figure was 35% in a sample of 450 women(Swaminathan et al. 2012, p 60). A survey of 400 households conducted in four districts in Karnataka in 2001 found that women in households that owned land had access to land, but rarely had ownership rights to it (Brown et al 2002, Cited in Swaminathan et al. 2012, p 60).The question conducted by in Karnataka, India Hema, Suchitra, and Lahoti (2011) shows gendered ownership of assets among man and women, where jewellery was the common and only asset directly owned by women. In Karnataka Women do not own assets by themselves they co-own assets with some or all household members. Jewellery is the only asset that they own indiv idually and which shows a revolutionise gender gap. Since jewellery is often pawned or sold during economic crises, it leaves women asset less and more vulnerable even as it provides a grapple strategy for households (Swaminathan et al. 2012, p 65). Seeing at the limitations in access, ownership and control of assets by women there is less probability for women to convert these assets into livelihood opportunities, specially when women do not own and manage them.When livelihood is concerned, access to banking serve is one crucial demesne. There exist gender disparities between man and women when it comes to banking services. While basic banking services are spreading in India, women are largely deprived of the basic banking service. In India, the available data boulder clay 2006 show that women at large remain considerably deprived of basic banking services as compared to men (Chavan 2008, p 18). If we consider credit supplied, only about 12 per cent of the individual bank l oan accounts belonged to women in 2006 in the same year, women constituted about half of Indias population (48.4 per cent).The rest 88 per cent of the individual bank loan accounts were held by men (Chavan 2008, p 18). Also The substantial offset in women-members of self-help hosts has not meant any major change in the access of women to banking (Chavan 2008, p 18). Another research done by Meenakshi, Vani, Manojit (2011) by examining the National Sample Survey administration unit record data pertaining to debt and investment (59th round) shows that the relatively weaker sections such as self employed egg-producing(prenominal) headed households have much less access to credit both from starchy and open sources.Gender is found to childs play a very significant role for both amount of income earn as well as the likelihood of an individual being employed. Women in India are found to have a 12 per cent pass up likelihood of being employed than men. But even among the employed, female yearbook incomes are likely to be lower by 36 per cent than otherwise similar males (Bhandari and Bordoloi 2006, p 3895). Which shows the very fact that there exist gendered discrimination in compass market. Gender also plays a of the essence(p) role in distribution and division of tire out, in the research conducted by Neetu C, Parthasarathy D (2007) in two villages in Nanded, Maharastra, India, reveals the clear cut division of labor between men and women. Women were found broadly to execute tasks which require so-called feminine endurance and patience. Al close households works were performed by women disregarding of whether they work and earn outside or not which shows the roles and responsibilities assigned to women define by the larger socio cultural context and by the household. And even among net workers, they were paid less as compared to male counterparts for similar work. From various angles women are subjugated limiting their opportunities for livelihood , and the general scenario of women is grim as far as their livelihoods are concerned, starting from assets ownership, opportunities to work, gendered assigned role and responsibilities limiting them to house hold works, access to credits from banking institutions etc and one important facial expression is that shocks like fall apart or finis of a married man can lead to women losing their assets particularly in cases where marriage is governed under customary laws that do not cheer womens right to property (Peterman 2010, cited in Meinzen-Dick et al. 2011, p 11). So there is utmost chance of women being vulnerable with limited resources when they are single and psyche a house alone.It is in this context that the study of the widows affected by build up conflict is being proposed they are very vulnerable group, their husband or spouses had died in encounters by the state police or force or killed by non state actors. These widows are those struggling to survive without thei r husband. subsequently the sock of their husbands death these widows in Manipur are struggling hard for their childrens future, contend against the stigma and isolation of a young widow of a pretend man (Lierde 2011). Meanwhile, the state, which has abdicated its responsibilities on all fronts, treats them as garbage, as trouble makers, as bad elements who must watch their step and, above all, need not to bother to crook to the state for a widows pension or for support for their fatherless children (Lierde 2011, p 14). Seeing the exposure women face in general and this section of women in particular the research proposes to study livelihoods, their vulnerabilities and the gender constrains.A brief review of literatureManipur in general the most important employment generating institution is the government institutions, due to lesser number of formal private domains in the market, mostly people opt for informal sector for their livelihood, and farm based activities, so the l iterature review section bequeath be mainly on informal sector and womens livelihood. There is midget information in the literature about the day-to-day activities of women in the informal labor market (Basu and Thomas 2009, p 234).Dramatic reductions in care barriers during the past 10 years have caused unprecedented economic growth in India. Little is known about the impact of globalization on the informal labor market, especially the impact on women (Basu and Thomas 2009, p 231). The National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (NCEUS) (2007) reports that roughly 79 per cent of informal sector workers earn less than Rs.20 (less than $0.5) per day, making them the most vulnerable group in the economy (Basu and Thomas 2009, p 231). There is a high chance for Women to work in informal sector, like in Manipur majority of the street vendors are women, and there is an specific market for women vendors called Ima keithel (Ima is a vernacular word which means mother, and keithel means market) and women are also be likely to be segregated into the lower segments of the informal labor market, which are characterized by lower earnings and a high hazard of poverty (Basu and Thomas 2009). The informal sector offers employment to a large proportion of the populations of developing countries, including India. This is particularly true for women since the informal sector, and situation-based work specifically, offer poor women their best fortune for work. This is because it provides the flexibility in work hours and location that they require to incorporate market work into their actual family work burdens as well as into the social norms regulating womens economic participation (Kantor 2002, p 285). A key constrain to women, in particular, for employability in the formal sector is lack of education, and also womens conventional function within the household limits the opportunity and keeps them in the informal sector (Basu and Thomas 2009). (Kantor 2002) pointed there major women pocket constrains in their economic opportunities, first is the limited mobility, which comes from the border socio cultural and traditional context and reinforced by gendered roles assigned to women within the household. This has serious signification limiting womens economic potential second is the womens more demanding role in the family as compared to man. Limited mobility effects women directly and indirectly in their economic progress, directly they are more likely to work in the home or near the vicinity of her home because of their assigned house hold works, and indirectly limiting economic success because of the work burden on the time, energy, and concentration levels they can apply to the market third is the gendered division of labor in productive work which limits the number of opportunities to work available to women. turn of female headed households(Buvini and Gupta 1997) pointed out the problems with defining and measuring female he aded households, first is the use of different definitions of both the term household and head of household by different countries in their census instruments. Second is the ambiguity inherent in the term head of household when the headship is assigned by the judgement of the household members which may differ across culture and geography, The third and perhaps most serious limitation is that the term head of household is not neutral. It is load with additional meanings that reflect a traditional emphasis on households as undifferentiated units with a patriarchal system of governance and no interior(a) conflicts in the allocation of resources (Nancy F 1990, Cited in Buvini and Gupta 1997).Three situations in which results in emergence of female-heads (a) The broad range of domestic situations generally characterised by the absence of a resident male head, viz, widowhood, divorce, separation and desertion. (b) Male migration for long periods generally for economic activities livin g behind wives, and (c) resident male losing economic function due to severe unemployment, disability, illness etc (Buvinic Youssef 1978, Cited in Lingam 1994, p 699). Women who head households are triply disadvantaged as they experience the burdens of poverty, gender discrimination, and nonexistence of support as heads of household (Buvini and Gupta 1997).Female headed household and poverty(Buvini and Gupta 1997) pointed out the relation of female headed household and povertyHere the main earners of female-headed families are by slackness women, who have lower average earnings as compared to men, they possess less or no assets at all which is economically productive, and limited access to remunerative jobs and employment. This gendered economic gap adds to the economic vulnerability of female-headed families.Combined with household structure and gendered differences in economic opportunity, make the female headed household starring(p) to poverty.Rationale of the studyWomen bei ng one of the vulnerable group in the society, and the group that the tec is studying have lost their daily carbohydrate earner which makes them more vulnerable.Most literature has spoken about rage inflicted towards women in Manipur and less about their vulnerability and livelihoods insecurity.The research could be a useful insight on livelihood intervention programs by various agencies giving and insight about the realities faced by the widows affected by gird conflict in sustaining their livelihoods.Objectives of the studyTo study the livelihood pattern of widows affected by armed conflictTo study the livelihoods vulnerability experient the widows affected by armed conflict.To ascertain how gender constrains limits the opportunity of their livelihood.The resolution of state and non state agencies towards them concerning to their livelihood.Conceptual frame workMany approach or theoretical framework to analyze and to understand vulnerability and livelihoods has been develope d and most of them attempt to understand peoples vulnerability to contingency specifically. The approaches take incident/hazard vulnerabilities as the starting point and seeing livelihoods as an aspect of the problem (Twigg 2001)During late 1980s and early 1990s two important conceptual models to analyze vulnerability were developed to understand vulnerability to disaster and from reducing it. One is the capacities and vulnerability framework analysis which basically is a round-eyed matrix for viewing peoples vulnerabilities and capacities in three broad unified areas. i.e. physical/material, social/organizational and motivational/attitudinal. In this model livelihoods is cover into physical/motivational category, which shows livelihood not in the center of discussion, if livelihoods has to be analyzed the model needs to develop specific indicator.Second is the insistence and release model of two opposing forces, on one side the progression of vulnerability i.e. root causes, dy namic pressure and unsafe condition, and on one side hazard which leads to vulnerability. Both of these attempts to address vulnerability towards disaster, and livelihood is not the prime focus (Twigg 2001).So for this particular study, the student/tec exit use the Sustainable Livelihood Framework to analyze the vulnerability and livelihood. The sustainable livelihood framework or SL framework begins with a organic evolution standpoint and puts livelihoods at the centre of the analysis, which is fitting with the proposed study. This framework takes into account all kinds of vulnerability as part of the context in which livelihoods are determine or influenced.CUsersKulajitDesktopsf.gifSources http//www.fao.org/docrep/007/y5808e/y5808e07.gifThe SL framework begins with the vulnerability context in which people live and the five livelihood assets that people posses, then it takes into account how changing structures and processes which in turn generates livelihood strategies. Livel ihood strategies is the basic coping acquisition or strategy people adopt within this three context, i.e. vulnerability, assets people own and the transforming structures and processes and finally the livelihood outcome which in turn affects the livelihood assets.The proposed study is located within the Sustainable Livelihood Framework, it seeks to examine the family relationship between the widow, their livelihoods, and how this this is conditioned by the various livelihood assets or capital which is also determined by the broder socio cultural and political structures, as well as the study will also look into the institutional utensil (both state and nongovernmental organizations) impacting them in their livelihoods. The conceptual frame work of the study is outlined as followsThrough this framework it will take into account the vulnerability context within which these widows live, like shocks after the death of their husband, trends like the current armed conflict and the tr ends in the governance and politics of Manipur, which in turns have impact on the strengths and capacities in the form of livelihood assets, like in a highly patriarchal society where land rights are denied to the women, death of the husband can lead women asset less which in turn may limit their livelihood opportunities. The transforming structures and process which include laws and policies and NGOs support which also affects their assets base. Within these three contexts which affects their livelihood base this frame work will look into the livelihood strategies they adopt and finally the livelihood outcomemethodological analysis of the researchThe area of study will be in Imphal which is the capital of Manipur, the student is selecting this particular area because Manipur has been witnessing armed conflict for decades with the emergence of armed self determination movement during late 40s and the approach of Indian recount by imposing laws like AFSPA 1958 has only worsen the si tuation. The situation has off-key into an ugly face with many ethnic based armed groups emerge with their own agendas. This has disrupted many in all aspects of their lives, and it is because of this ongoing armed conflict these widows have been generated and within this context the research will study the livelihood of widows affected by armed conflict. By widows of the grease-gun, It refers to those widows whose husband or spouses have died in encounter killings by state forces/army or by the armed non state actors.The universe of the research will be the widows affected by armed conflict registered in an Imphal based NGO named Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network which is working for the widows affected by armed conflict, As the researcher has time constrain with regard to data collection the area of research is limited to Imphal and the sample size will be 10 to 15 widows. Sampling will be done using simple random sampling so that individuals have the same probability of bein g chosen at any stage during the sampling process.The proposed research will be a qualitative one. This is because the study of the livelihood vulnerability, these particular group faces will require a lot of observations on the part of the researcher and the data will have to be gathered through observant the norms and the life activities of the respondents.Unstructured in-depth hearinging technique will be used to interview the respondents about their perceptions and views regarding their day-to-day livelihood activities. Through this interview, the overall nature of the vulnerabilities and the risks that the widows of the gun face will be ascertained. Though the in-depth interviews will be individual interviews, it will take into context the broader socio cultural and the household context of the individuals.Limitations of the researchAs the research is a MA Research Dissertation which is a part of the course curriculum, the outcomes of the study will be indicative and cannot be generalised.