Women's Social Capital and Social Cohesion in Kerala: The Case of Kudumbashree

Bhoola Sheetal, Chetty Dasarath, Chathukulam Jos, Ngcobo Nolwazi and Moolakkattu John
Additional contact information
Bhoola Sheetal: The University of Zululand
Chetty Dasarath: Durban University of Technology
Chathukulam Jos: The Centre of Rural Management
Ngcobo Nolwazi: The University of KwaZulu-Natal
Moolakkattu John: Mahatma Gandhi University

Journal of Economic and Social Development, 2024, vol. 11, issue 02, 01-12

Abstract: This paper examines the claim that the Kudumbashree women of Kerala, built around microfinance but now a key actor in Kerala’s economic, social, and welfare landscape, constitute a form of social capital and contributes to social cohesion. The study is based on desk research based on the existing studies supplemented by interviews with key informants and focus group discussions. An overview of Kerala’s society and politics, the rise of inclusive neighbourhood movements as precursors of the Kudumbashree and the functions that the poverty-focused and state-initiated Kudumbashree women’s program is discussed. It then discusses the communal situation in Kerala and how stiff competition between the dominant communities have operated without violence and how the sporadic communal conflicts are contained through accommodation and public disapproval. It then concludes with a critical assessment of the role of Kudumbashree as a form of social capital primarily and as a force for social cohesion.

Keywords: Women; Kerala; Kudumbashree; Social Capital; Social Cohesion (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: A11 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2024
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://www.jesd-online.com/articles/womens-social ... -of-kudumbashree.pdf Full text (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:ris:joeasd:0010

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Journal of Economic and Social Development from Clinical Journals Press
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Marijan Cingula ().