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Article
19 Mar 2024
How NFHS Data Can Help Craft Policy for Women’s Financial Inclusion
Context
- Financial inclusion plays a pivotal role in achieving eight out of the 17 SDGs, emphasising its crucial role in fostering a sustainable and inclusive future.
- Despite its significance, disparities persist, as highlighted in India's below-average performance in the Global Gender Gap Report 2023, particularly in the economic domain.
- Therefore, it becomes crucial to have an assessment of the nuanced dimensions of financial inclusion for women in India, drawing insights from various sources, including the World Bank's Global Findex Database and the National Family Health Survey (NFHS).
Global Progress in Financial Inclusion
- Financial inclusion has emerged as a crucial driver of economic growth and development globally, with India making significant strides in this domain.
- The WB's Global Findex Database highlights a notable increase in adult ownership of bank accounts worldwide between 2011 and 2020, with India experiencing a commendable rise of 42 percentage points during this period.
- This surge underscores the effectiveness of initiatives aimed at expanding access to financial services, particularly for marginalised populations, including women.
Impact of Initiatives Undertaken by the Government in Finance Inclusion
- Reduced Gender Gap in Account Ownership
- India's efforts to enhance financial inclusion have yielded promising results, with the gender gap in account ownership witnessing a considerable reduction.
- The introduction of the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana (PMJDY) in 2014 played a pivotal role in this regard.
- PMJDY aimed to provide universal access to banking services, offering basic savings accounts, remittance facilities, and overdrafts to underserved communities, including women in rural and urban areas.
- As of January 2024, PMJDY has facilitated the opening of over 28 crore accounts for women, significantly contributing to bridging the gender gap in financial access.
- Instrumental in Women’s Economic Empowerment
- Moreover, various government initiatives such as the Deendayal Antyodaya Yojana and the National Rural Livelihood Mission (DAY-NRLM) have been instrumental in fostering women's economic empowerment and enhancing their participation in the formal financial sector.
- These schemes provide avenues for skill development, entrepreneurship training, and access to credit, thereby enabling women to establish and sustain livelihoods.
- Additionally, social protection programs like the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana and Pradhan Mantri Matru Vandana Yojana offer financial assistance and support to women, particularly during key life stages such as pregnancy and homeownership.
Broader Impact of Financial Inclusion on Women's Empowerment
- The progress in financial inclusion is not merely confined to access to bank accounts but also encompasses broader economic participation and empowerment.
- By providing women with avenues for savings, credit, and investment, financial inclusion enables them to mitigate risks, accumulate assets, and seize opportunities for socio-economic advancement.
- Furthermore, increased financial access enhances women's resilience to economic shocks and vulnerabilities, fostering greater household welfare and economic stability.
Insights from NFHS Data about the Progress in Financial Inclusion
- Financial Autonomy and Decision-making
- NFHS data provides valuable insights into the nuanced dimensions of women's financial inclusion in India.
- Over the past two decades, there has been a notable improvement in various indicators related to women's economic empowerment and access to financial services.
- One significant aspect highlighted by NFHS surveys is the increasing financial autonomy among women.
- Women are gaining greater control over financial resources, with a growing number possessing self-operated bank accounts and exercising sovereignty over financial decisions within their households.
- This trend signifies a shift towards greater economic agency and independence among women, contributing to their overall empowerment and well-being.
- Awareness and Utilization of Micro-Credit Programs
- Micro-credit schemes play a crucial role in providing financial assistance to women entrepreneurs and small business owners, particularly in rural areas.
- NFHS surveys indicate a growing awareness of these programs among women, with an increasing number availing themselves of micro-credit facilities to support their economic activities.
- This underscores the importance of targeted interventions and support mechanisms in enabling women to access formal sources of credit and finance, thereby fostering entrepreneurship and income generation at the grassroots level.
- Access and Utilisation of Formal Banking Services
- By analysing factors such as education, occupation, and household characteristics, NFHS surveys identify key determinants of women's financial inclusion.
- Education emerges as a significant driver, with educated women exhibiting higher levels of awareness and utilisation of financial services.
- Similarly, occupation and access to electronic media also play crucial roles in shaping women's access to formal banking channels and digital financial tools.
- These findings underscore the importance of targeted interventions and policy measures to address disparities and barriers hindering women's financial inclusion, particularly among marginalized and vulnerable groups.
Challenges and Future Directions
- Addressing Financial Literacy Gaps
- Despite the expansion of banking services, many individuals, particularly in rural and marginalised communities, lack adequate knowledge and understanding of financial products and services.
- Enhancing financial literacy through targeted education and awareness campaigns is essential to empower individuals to make informed financial decisions and fully utilize available resources.
- Bridging the Digital Divide
- While digital financial services hold immense potential to enhance access and convenience, disparities in internet connectivity, smartphone ownership, and digital literacy limit their effectiveness.
- Expanding digital infrastructure and promoting digital literacy initiatives are imperative to ensure equitable access to digital financial services for all segments of society.
- Promoting Inclusivity of Marginalised Communities
- Moreover, ensuring the inclusivity of marginalized communities, including women, minorities, and persons with disabilities, remains a pressing challenge.
- Despite concerted efforts to promote financial inclusion, these groups continue to face systemic barriers, including social, cultural, and economic factors.
- Tailored interventions and affirmative action programs are necessary to address these disparities and create an enabling environment for their meaningful participation in the financial ecosystem.
- Advancing through Multi-stakeholder Collaboration
- To overcome these challenges and advance financial inclusion, a multi-stakeholder approach is indispensable.
- Collaboration between government agencies, financial institutions, civil society organisations, and grassroots initiatives is essential to coordinate efforts, leverage resources, and implement holistic solutions.
Conclusion
- Advancing financial inclusion for women in India is pivotal for creating inclusive growth and sustainable development.
- Initiatives such as PMJDY and DAY-NRLM have laid a strong foundation, yet concerted efforts are needed to address existing disparities and harness the full potential of women's economic participation.
- By prioritising education, digital literacy, and targeted awareness programs, India can unlock new avenues for women's economic empowerment, driving forward the agenda of inclusive growth and prosperity.
Editorial Analysis
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
What is Barberton Greenstone Belt?
Scientists recently found signs of some of the earliest known earthquakes at the Barberton Greenstone Belt.
About Barberton Greenstone Belt:
- It is situated on the eastern edge of the Kaapvaal Craton in South Africa. It is known for its gold mineralisation and for its komatiites, an unusual type of ultramafic volcanic rock named after the Komati River that flows through the belt.
- Some of the oldest exposed rocks on Earth (greater than 3.6 Ga) are located in the Barberton Greenstone Belt of the Eswatini–Barberton areas, and these contain some of the oldest traces of life on Earth, second only to the Isua Greenstone Belt of Western Greenland. The Makhonjwa Mountains make up 40% of the Baberton belt.
What are ultramafic rocks?
- Ultramafic (or ultrabasic) rocks are dark-colored igneous and meta-igneous rocks that are rich in minerals containing magnesium and iron ("mafic" minerals) and have a relatively low content of silica.
- They are generally composed of more than 90 percent mafic minerals—that is, they have a high content of magnesium oxide (more than 18 percent MgO) and iron oxide (FeO). Their silica content is less than 45 percent, and their potassium content is low.
- The Earth's mantle is thought to be composed of ultramafic rocks. Most of the exposed ultramafic rocks have been found in orogenic (mountain-forming) belts.
Geography
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
What is Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS)?
Exporters seeking to avail duty concessions on shipments to the UK will have to adhere to the new British rules under the Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS).
About Developing Countries Trading Scheme (DCTS):
- It is a scheme introduced by the UK Government to facilitate developing countries to integrate into the global economy, create stronger trade and investment partnerships and strengthen supply chains.
- It is a simpler and more generous preferential trading scheme which has been designed to boost trade with developing countries in order to support their development.
- It reduces or removes rates of duty, or tariffs, on imports from eligible developing countries into the UK. It also enables UK businesses to access thousands of products from around the globe at lower prices, reducing costs for UK consumers.
- The DCTS applies to 65 countries, that are:
- least developed countries (LDCs) as defined by the United Nations.
- low-income countries (LIC) and lower middle-income countries (LMIC) as defined by the World Bank.
- It will provide duty-free, quota-free trade to LDCs on everything but arms and duty-free, quota-free trade on 85% of eligible goods to most low LIC and LMIC countries.
- It does not extend to countries and territories deemed by the World Bank as ‘upper-middle income’ for three consecutive years, or to LICs and LMICs who have a free trade agreement (FTA) with the UK.
Economy
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
World Air Quality Report 2023
Delhi was identified as the capital city with the poorest air quality, according to a new report by World Air Quality Report 2023.
About World Air Quality Report 2023:
- It is published by the Swiss organisation IQAir.
- Highlights:
- With an average air annual particulate matter 2.5 (PM2.5) concentration of 54.4 micrograms per cubic metre, India had the third worst air quality.
- India was better than only two of its neighbouring countries, Bangladesh and Pakistan.
- While Bangladesh remained the most polluted country in the world, with an average PM2.5 concentration of 79.9 micrograms per cubic metre, Pakistan was second, with a level of 73.7.
- It also identified Delhi as the most polluted capital city in the world for the fourth consecutive time. Bihar's Begusarai was termed the world's most polluted metropolitan area.
- Ten out of the top 11 most polluted cities in the world are from India, the other being Lahore in Pakistan.
- 96 percent of the Indian population experiences PM2.5 levels more than seven times the WHO annual PM2.5 guideline.
What is Particulate Matter (PM)?
- It is made of solid particles and liquid droplets in the air. In general, any type of burning or any dust-generating activities are sources of PM.
- PM comes in many different sizes.
- Larger particles come mostly from the soil. Smaller particles come from burning of fossil fuels, like gasoline in cars, diesel in trucks, and coal used by power plants.
- PM is also divided into primary and secondary categories.
- Primary PM is directly emitted from a smokestack or a tailpipe. Secondary PM forms downwind from sources of gaseous emissions through chemical reactions.
Environment
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
What is Genetic Rescue?
Genetic rescue is proposed as a method to conserve Ranthambore National Park’s tiger population.
About Genetic Rescue:
- Genetic rescue is the process of increasing population growth with new genetic variation by migrating individuals into another small population (i.e., gene flow).
- In practice, wildlife managers take individuals from a larger, healthier population, and bring them to a smaller population to introduce new variation. This conservation strategy aims to alleviate genetic load, decrease extinction risk, and enhance the viability of endangered species and populations.
- It is often employed in conservation biology to mitigate the negative effects of inbreeding depression, which can occur when individuals within a population mate with close relatives, leading to decreased reproductive success and viability of offspring.
- Genetic rescue can have both beneficial and deleterious effects, depending on factors such as the magnitude and duration of gene flow, as well as the genetic and non-genetic factors influencing population dynamics. There can be risks involved with moving animals around, so it’s often thought of as a last resort.
Science & Tech
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
What are Peatlands?
A new study finds that canals used to drain soggy peatlands in Southeast Asia are likely hotspots for greenhouse gas emissions.
About Peatlands:
- Peatlands are terrestrial wetland ecosystems in which waterlogged conditions prevent plant material from fully decomposing. Consequently, the production of organic matter exceeds its decomposition, which results in a net accumulation of peat.
- These occur in every climatic zone and continent and cover around 2.84% of the Earth’s terrestrial surface.
- The majority of the world’s peatlands occur in boreal and temperate parts of the Northern Hemisphere, especially, Europe, North America, and Russia, where they have formed under high precipitation-low temperature climatic regimes.
- About 84% of the world’s peatlands are considered to be in natural, or near-natural state. Drained peatlands make up about 16% of the world’s peatlands, or 0.5% of the Earth’s terrestrial surface.
- Due to the process of peat accumulation, peatlands are carbon rich ecosystems. Peatlands are the largest natural terrestrial carbon store. They store more carbon than all other vegetation types in the world combined.
- Damaged peatlands are a major source of greenhouse gas emissions, responsible for almost 5% of global anthropogenic CO2 emissions.
Environment
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
Exercise Tiger Triumph
Exercise Tiger Triumph is scheduled on the Eastern Seaboard from 18 to 31 March 2024.
About Exercise Tiger Triumph:
- It is a bilateral tri-Service Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief (HADR) Exercise between India and the US.
- It is aimed at developing interoperability for conducting HADR operations and refine Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to enable rapid and smooth coordination between forces of both countries.
- On completion of the Harbour Phase, the ships, with the troops embarked, would sail for the Sea Phase and undertake Maritime, Amphibious and HADR operations in accordance with injected situations.
- Indian Navy Ships with integral helicopters and landing crafts embarked, Indian Navy aircraft, Indian Army personnel and vehicles and Indian Air Force aircraft and helicopters along with the Rapid Action Medical Team (RAMT) would be participating in the exercise.
Source : EX TIGER TRIUMPH – 24
International Relations
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
Key features of TEPA?
The India-EFTA Trade and Economic Partnership Agreement (TEPA) is the latest in India’s recent Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) which ventures into some uncharted territory.
About TEPA:
- Features
- Investment: TEPA sets out a target of a $100 billion investment into India from EFTA countries and consequent one million jobs over a 15-year period.
- It also provides India the ability to withdraw its tariff concessions if such expected investment is not achieved. If India is not satisfied, it can pull back its tariff concessions in a proportionate manner after 18 years.
- Trade in goods: India is mandated to eliminate tariff on most products within seven to 10 years.
- With regard to India’s exports to EFTA, there will be no material impact since most products face very low or zero tariff for nations which have the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status in EFTA countries.
- Trade in services: On services, both India and the EFTA members have committed to liberalisation across a wide range of sectors.
- Sustainable development: The TEPA’s chapter on Trade and Sustainable Development (TSD), comprising commitments on environment and labour aspects, represents a first for India in any FTA.
- Intellectual property rights: the EFTA countries are home to several pharmaceutical and high technology MNCs, whose ask has been commitments on protection of intellectual property rights that exceed the WTO’s Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS) Agreement.
- The TEPA’s IPR Annex requires swift rejection of “prima facie unfounded” oppositions. This potentially opens up India’s internal regulatory process to external scrutiny on whether this standard was met.
Economy
Current Affairs
March 19, 2024
IceCube Neutrino Observatory
Scientists using data from the IceCube Neutrino Observatory in Antarctica believe they have potentially found the first evidence for astrophysical tau neutrinos, called "ghost particles"
About IceCube Neutrino Observatory:
- It is a device at the earth’s South Pole that detects subatomic particles called neutrinos. It was built and is maintained by the IceCube Collaboration, which consists of many universities worldwide led by the University of Wisconsin, Madison.
- It consists of thousands of sensors buried more than 1.4 km beneath the ice plus multiple detectors above the surface. It is the world’s biggest ‘neutrino telescope’.
- Working:
- When a neutrino interacts with the ice surrounding the sensors, it may produce some charged particles and some radiation.
- The sensors detect the radiation to infer the detection of a neutrino and use the radiation’s properties to understand more about the particle.
- Neutrinos come in different types. IceCube can identify some of them in real-time.
Science & Tech