“A mechanism must be created to increase the representation of women in politics by 2030”

Our correspondent
Kohima | 23 august

The Nagaland Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Vision 2030 in its Goal 5 on “Gender Equality” aims to achieve gender equality and empower all women and girls. The vision is to improve the socio-economic status of women as well as provide support services to the general public and balance the gender divide, uplift women and facilitate their empowerment.

The vision statement said that in addition to enabling and encouraging women to develop their skills, balanced and gender responsive markets will help uplift women and enable greater reach of their products and services.

MYKI Bazaars in all neighborhoods
The Women’s Resource Development Department (WRD) intends to set up MYKI bazaars in all districts of Nagaland in different phases. It is proposed that MYKI bazaars be located in all centers of the group of villages under a single block or block level where feasibility is high.

To make MYKI bazaars functional, he said that the identification of existing / abandoned marketing sheds built by any other agency / department in the proposed area will be done at the infrastructure level. This will be followed by the initiation of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the relevant agency / department and the repair and renovation of the marketing hangar.

At the operational level, the identification and sensitization of self-help groups (SHGs), companies or NGOs existing in the proposed area / block and the injection of essential seed capital into the SHGs would be initiated.

He also said the government will continue to hold the MYKI Fest every year with more inclusiveness and coverage. Launched in 2018, MYKI Fest is an annual event to celebrate the activities and achievements of women entrepreneurs, artisans, artists, farmers and SHGs.

It aims to showcase their achievements, products and activities, explore more business links inside and outside the state, interaction and exchange of ideas and concepts between entrepreneurs, facilitate business-to-business cooperation and help women entrepreneurs gain exposure to regional and other business environments. and opportunities.

By 2030, around 15,000 girls, young women, farmers and entrepreneurs who drop out of school are expected to have already benefited or benefited from the program.

As part of the Government of India’s ‘Digital India’ initiative, the WRD department has also offered to launch a direct online marketing platform called MYKI e-Bazaar to support women entrepreneurs, artisans, farmers, business groups. mutual aid and NGOs, especially those who have innovative products but are not Internet or IT.

The social protection department focuses on “Mission Effloresce” for empowering rural women through skills development and entrepreneurs to improve productivity, he added.

One stop shop for women
The vision statement stated that “a one-stop-shop for women” established in all districts will contribute to the overall safety and security of women in the state.

Special appeals to tackle cases of domestic violence will be launched and awareness-raising efforts will be made. The 181 women’s helpline will be integrated to support victims of violence, both mental and physical, he said.

Gender sensitivity
In order to have gender sensitivity and enable the upliftment of women, the state apparatus aims to incorporate various stages.

Regarding sensitive governance, the vision statement stated that the governance process should be inclusive and participatory.

“Gender responsive governance requires that policies and legislation take into account the different needs, interests, priorities and responsibilities of women and men. Equal opportunities should be extended to men and women for employment, leadership and decision-making at all levels. All citizens must have equal access to quality education, economic resources and political participation by 2025, ”he said.

Gender responsive budgeting is a necessary area of ​​intervention to ensure strategic gender interests through analysis, resource allocation and impact assessment of the basic needs of women and women.

The vision statement said that gender-responsive infrastructure interventions can reduce the cost of women’s time and increase mobility and security.

“It increases the productivity of women, which makes society more productive. Recognition of gender-differentiated needs is necessary when designing new development projects and gender-sensitive infrastructure should be included in all planning, ”he said.

Stating that capacity building programs and social protection / livelihoods programs should have equal participation of men and women, he said sex disaggregated data should therefore be made mandatory for all programs in order to determine the composition of the program.

Participation in policy development
The vision statement said having gender responsive policies and encouraging the participation of women in policy making is a key step in ensuring a gender balanced state and stressed that the policy formulation of the Nagaland State for Women with a full governing framework is needed.

“This will lead to the advancement, development and empowerment of women bearing in mind the unique socio-cultural context of the state,” he said.

Stating that Nagaland has not had a single woman elected to the Nagaland Legislative Assembly since the state’s inception, he added that only 15 female candidates have run so far since 1964, compared to 2,071 male candidates. .

“Considering that Nagaland has one of the best male-to-female population ratios in the country, this statistic is very skewed and unhealthy. Women make up half of the state’s population and their participation in policy making is essential. Therefore, a mechanism must be created to increase the representation of women in politics by 2030, ”he said.

Village Development Council
VDB rules stipulate a quota of 25 percent for women in the VDB. Although this is a government law and does not violate traditional or customary laws, in many villages women are not adequately represented, he said.

In this context, the VDB rules can be amended to provide for the appointment of female VDB secretaries on a rotating basis alternating the duration between men and women, he added.

In addition, the 25 percent sub-allocation for women under the VDB fund can be channeled through the nodal department to ensure full and efficient use.

Asset ownership
The vision statement said that women’s economic empowerment elevates the status of women both economically and socially.

“Yet customary inheritance laws create a gender disparity in asset ownership, preventing women from using land as inputs for production or as collateral for credit. To alleviate these constraints, certificates of land title in the name of husband and wife should be encouraged by amending the terms of land registration laws. To incentivize the registration of property on behalf of women, a stamp duty discount / concession should be given when registering land and assets in their name, ”he said.

Equal salary
Equal pay for work of equal value ensures inclusive growth. However, wage disparity between men and women based on stereotypes about women’s roles is not uncommon, he said.

In the agricultural sector of Nagaland where women constitute the majority of the workforce, there are wage disparities, he said while asserting that it is “essential to fight against gender biases in the structure. wages by 2030 with sustained policy development efforts inspired by the MGNREGA program. . “

FOCUS for tomorrow
• Socio-economic empowerment of women through subsistence activities
• Formulate Nagaland State Policy for Women
• Increase the representation of women in policy making
• Facilitate gender sensitivity.

2030 goals on “gender equality”

• Establish women’s resource centers in all districts of Nagaland by 2030
• 3,500 women farmers will benefit from sustainable livelihood activities as part of the women’s resource development program
• Train at least 1,000 young women and dropouts in self-employment as part of the Multi Training Center
• Train more than 1,500 out-of-school girls and young women to promote entrepreneurship and self-employment through the Resource Center for Integral Development (IDRC)
• Train 2,000 women in various short-term vocational courses and skills development through the Women’s Resource Center.