Empowerment of women through cottage industry in Kodagu

Abstract

Cottage industry contributes to the economy by absorbing a significant portion of the workforce in rural areas. The role of women in cottage industries is well known and it helps them in contributing to their livelihood. In addition, cottage industries help women participate in social activities build leadership skills and assist them in decision making within their family. This study is an attempt is to establish the potential of empowerment of women through cottage industry in Kodagu. This study is based on primary data collected from women engaged in cottage industry as an occupation for their sustainable livelihood and their economic independence. newlineThe objective of this research is to study the role of cottage industries in empowerment of women in terms of personal, relational and environmental factors and to analyse the contribution of cottage industries on working women in comparison with non-working women. This study is descriptive in nature and aims to find that working in cottage industries leads to empowerment. Study population includes both working and Non-working women 384 subjects in each group from Kodagu district. Responses were collected using Questionnaire including questions related to demographic personal relational and environmental factors, which was analysed, by using statistical tools SPSS and AMOS software. newlineResults showed that the cottage industries plays a pivotal role in women empowerment in Kodagu and the results are significant. Higher empowerment was observed in working women as measured by Personal Relational and Environmental factors. The study illustrates that cottage industries support women in gaining self-confidence and thus empowering them towards household decision-making. Cottage industry provides enormous opportunities for women and contribute to their empowerment by assisting to become self-employed and it meets not only local but also international demand. newline