1. Community women’s groups lead reconstruction & build resilience
POOR & VULNERABLE OR
PARTNERS & PLANNERS ?
Community women’s groups lead reconstruction & build resilience
Prema Gopalan
SSP India
Presented at the Policy Workshop
Beijing July

2. Natural Disasters, Social Exclusion and Development
Natural disasters destroy human security, enhance social exclusion vulnerability and the “normal” conditions for development
Yet they provide an unique opportunity for
Long term poverty reduction and development
Strong local planning and governance
Economic & social empowerment of women and vulnerable groups
Strategic change in social status and relations
between men and women

3. 3 P -Pillars of Reconstruction
Participation : Social organizations & networks, capacities
Planning :Demand led planning and supervision of houses & basic services infrastructure
Partnerships : accountability to people, engagement between people and government

4. Catalysts –Why involve Women Groups ?
Full participation : Of women, vulnerable groups & Information outreach – on entitlements to last household
Assistance - monies better managed (if govt plans to give cash assistance )
Houses : safe , design inputs , save on costs, oversee safety -masons , engineers, access loans, subsidies,
Credit & Access to Markets
Services :Restore & monitor Health, Water & Sanitation

5. Swayam Shikshan Prayog INDIA (Self Learning Experiment)
SSP is a learning and development organization Partners with grassroots women’s self help groups federations of 60,000 + members and local governments
Outreach : Over 1.5 million people across 1084 villages after the mass scale earthquakes in three states of Maharashtra (1993), Gujarat (2001) and tsunami in Tamil Nadu (2004).
Focus: Better access to sustainable livelihoods,affordable micro credit, food, energy, health care, water & sanitation through social enterprise

6. Global Networks for Community Resilience
GROOTS International & Huairou Commision links to 55 countries - rural and urban grassroots women’s groups and networks to highlight & advocate & work with Governments for community-driven, pro-poor solutions in post disaster recovery & resilience

7. Post Earthquake Reconstruction –Examples from India
1993 AND 2001 Earthquakes
Launched Repair & Strengthening Program Govt supported by World Bank
Provision of cash grants Rs.17,000 (US $360)
Govt appointed engineers to design plans & make estimates
House owners : contribution of labour, cash & materials
ISSUES
Reconstruction of houses was slow and uneven progress
House owners de-motivated by uneven access to information, grants
and materials
Vulnerable Groups low participation and access
Local Governments were bypassed

8. Challenges Overcome Redesigned program & Roles redefined
Government Community Participation Plan parallel to Reconstruction of houses introduced (instead of delivering individual beneficiary assistance )
Education, training & information outreach through appointed women groups as Communication Assistants
Local governments Facilitation of common services: water, transport materials , banks by Local Governments

9. Strategies that Worked
Access to participation in groups, networks
Building Local capacities
Empowerment of poor and vulnerable groups
Access to economic resources for asset building
Local to Local Partnerships

10. Access to social networks
Mobilizing women & youth groups, teachers as volunteers for recovery to development
Demonstration and on site training for men and women on safe construction
Women’s savings & credit groups involved in local planning –water, sanitation, health, livelihoods.
People to People Exchanges to transfer & scale up innovations

11. Building local capacities
Building local knowledge / capacity on earthquake safe technology through mass information campaign and training
On-site training for masons, engineers and skilled workers

12. Strengthening poor and vulnerable groups
Listing and linking of vulnerable groups –destitute women, children ,old, /disabled /physically challenged to govt programs
Mass information / education program on earthquake safety, entitlements &procedures to access loans subisdies,services
Neighbourhood watch groups to monitor neglect, corruption & access to entitlements

13. Access to resources for asset building & basic services
Improved access to micro credit, asset insurance
Improving access and management of schools, health and child care centres
Restore & diversify livelihoods, new markets and promote viable enterprise
Social protection : life & health insurance, weather & crop insurance
Construction of women’s information centers

14. Local to Local Partnerships
Encouraged Provincial Government to get women’s groups to finalize lists, address conflicts, complaints on entitlements, give credit collective buying &distribution of materials, procurement &contracts
Working together :Groups to motivate people, social audit and provide timely information and feedback to the administration.
Grants for training, land +buildings for community centres

15. Results
Thousands of grassroots women & youth groups recognized formally as local CATALYSTS results in
New leadership & networks with capacities
New skills and knowledge for building earthquake safe construction & demand for good governance
Widespread awareness among school children and youth
Social Audit :Reduced corruption and leakage of resources
Conflict resolution and feedback mechanisms

16. Results
Collective approach to reconstruction -Broke “beneficiary” mentality – owner contribution
Transformed Community-Local Govt -Administration relations
Enabled emergence of women’s groups and leadership of communities in over 1000 villages

17. Community Resource Centres

18. Rebuilding Community Focus on safety & transparency, trust building
Involving vulnerable groups for full participation
Social networks to share & manage disaster risk
Women managed Community Resource Centres for people generated data, updated information & mutual psycho social support, child care, income generation
Protect natural resources, set up markets, upgrade livelihoods and increase food security
Improve access to basic services
Provide access to cash loans, micro credit, insurance
Information in peoples hands

19. We have to see People as Partners
BUT
Owners & stakeholders
Planners, Managers
NOT
Disaster Victims
Program Beneficiaries

20. Myths and Facts Myth: Grassroots equals small scale.
Fact: Grassroots information spreads word by mouth -equals very big scale.
Myth: Grassroots work means low-tech work.
Fact: high quality using local technology which works
Myth: They need to learn and be trained.
Fact: Grassroots can train and teach experts.
Myth: Affected people are victims need to be provided with aid and need their houses built.
Fact: They are the first ones to respond, rebuild houses and this demand can drive recovery and later mitigation process.

21. Women from Turkey Earthquake observe the recovery progress in India

22. What can Government do ?
How government can resource, mandate, formalize women's facilitator roles and support participation through institutional mechanisms
Formalize these roles to maximize benefits and accelerate the recovery and reconstruction process
Donors, international emergency aid agencies broaden accountability measures for aid and loan granting to reward disaster reduction efforts
Recognize that poor women are among the most vulnerable and marginalized groups when disaster strikes and yet it is they who are the change makers
Creating formal agreements/committees where women’s groups can organize to participate in post disaster efforts
Formally allocating resources and roles to groups of affected women