In this essay, I am going to argue that the recent surge in economic growth in India can be attributed in part to the improvement of the status of its female citizens and that further growth will be dependent on continued efforts made towards complete gender empowerment. To support my argument, I will first discuss the role empowered women play in their economies, then I will highlight the role women play in reducing poverty and hunger, and finally I will explain how the condition of women within a country determines its level of development. Incorporation of women into the workings of the state and its industry is therefore an indispensable part of development and progress.
Following the end of the cold war and the fall of the Soviet Union …show more content…
While there are many definitions of poverty there is one unifying theme: Poverty is a condition suffered by people, the majority of whom are female (Evans and Thomas 433) where one lacks the social or economic means to provide oneself, and family, with the basic requirements of life. Oftentimes images of the slums of India act as representations of the worst human living conditions and most extreme levels of poverty anywhere in the world. One might ask, how does decreasing the poverty experienced by women affect the country as a whole? The effects of lifting women out of poverty will be passed on to subsequent generations. Empowered women become able to send their children, both boys, and girls, to school, and literate mothers will most likely raise literate children. Countries with higher literacy rates are generally more economically prosperous. In addition, educated girls, in particular, grow up to become women who have fewer children which ultimately improves one of the biggest issues in the developing world today: overpopulation. It may at first not be apparent how overpopulation inhibits development, or why it is such an issue. One explanation for “the continued existence of hunger is that population growth outstrips food production” (Evans and Thomas 445). It then becomes clear how a disproportionality between available resources and population size, whether it be for education, health care, or food, acts as a major deterrent for prosperity. Women who rise out of poverty are ultimately healthier women who produce healthier future generations, and who create a healthier society. A nation of healthy individuals alone is a huge factor in allowing for the growth of a nation, and healthier women also contribute to a more efficient, and productive
Following the end of the cold war and the fall of the Soviet Union …show more content…
While there are many definitions of poverty there is one unifying theme: Poverty is a condition suffered by people, the majority of whom are female (Evans and Thomas 433) where one lacks the social or economic means to provide oneself, and family, with the basic requirements of life. Oftentimes images of the slums of India act as representations of the worst human living conditions and most extreme levels of poverty anywhere in the world. One might ask, how does decreasing the poverty experienced by women affect the country as a whole? The effects of lifting women out of poverty will be passed on to subsequent generations. Empowered women become able to send their children, both boys, and girls, to school, and literate mothers will most likely raise literate children. Countries with higher literacy rates are generally more economically prosperous. In addition, educated girls, in particular, grow up to become women who have fewer children which ultimately improves one of the biggest issues in the developing world today: overpopulation. It may at first not be apparent how overpopulation inhibits development, or why it is such an issue. One explanation for “the continued existence of hunger is that population growth outstrips food production” (Evans and Thomas 445). It then becomes clear how a disproportionality between available resources and population size, whether it be for education, health care, or food, acts as a major deterrent for prosperity. Women who rise out of poverty are ultimately healthier women who produce healthier future generations, and who create a healthier society. A nation of healthy individuals alone is a huge factor in allowing for the growth of a nation, and healthier women also contribute to a more efficient, and productive