Women’s organisations are an important part of current affairs for the UPSC civil services exam. This is important from the prelims point of view and also to enhance your answers in the mains papers, especially in topics related to social issues.
Women empowerment is a current topic and one that has reverberations across different domains. Issues of health, labour laws, education, employment, sexual harassment issues, safety concerns, women’s representation in politics and Parliament are all related to women empowerment and the equal rights movement.
There is the issue of feminism and the pros and cons of it. There are many organisations that work in this sphere in India and internationally also. Some of them are very old and have origins in the pre-independence era.
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The following table gives a list of major women’s organisations across the world.
List of Women’s Organisations
|
Important international organization exclusively for Women empowerment |
|
| Associations of Junior Leagues International | Relief Society |
| Christian Women in Media Association | Soroptimist International |
| Council of Women World Leaders | St. Joan’s International Alliance |
| Ellevate Network | Third World Organization for Women in Science |
| Equality Now | UN Women |
| International Alliance of Women | UNIFEM – United Nations Development Fund for Women |
| International Association of Women Police | Woman’s Christian Temperance Union |
| International Council of Women | Women’s Commission For Refugee Women |
| International Federation of Business and Professional Women | Women’s Environment & Development Organization |
| International Federation of University Women | Women’s International Democratic Federation |
| International Inner Wheel | Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) |
| International Women’s Suffrage Alliance | Women’s International Zionist Organization |
| National Women’s Political Caucus | Women’s World Wide Web (W4) |
| Nobel Women’s Initiative | World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts |
| P.E.O. Sisterhood | Young Women’s Christian Association |
| Quota International |
Zonta International |
Role of Women and Women Organisations in India
Women in India have played a major role in various spheres of life over the past many centuries, but their acceptance in these spheres has been a crucial issue. Thus, the involvement of women in social, political and economic scenarios has brought in a major change in the terms of equality.
Given below are a few factors which emphasize on the importance of women and women organisations in the country:
- Gender Equality – With equal opportunities for all genders, multiple women have been an inspiration for young girls to dream and aspire to become big. Also, to ensure that women are given equal status in society, many organisations are working towards this cause
- Women in Political Spheres – Several women leaders have actively participated in the Indian freedom struggle, occupied important positions in the Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha, state legislatures; women also have acquired the position of the Prime Minister and President of the country
- Economic Roles – At workplace women are working at par with the other gender. The neglect of women’s economic roles results in the exploitation of women workers, unequal wages, higher employment, etc., though are a cause of concern. Candidates can read about Gender Pay Parity at the linked article.
-  Social Issues – A National Commission for Women (NCW) has been set up with an intention to establish an equal and just livelihood for women by making legal and constitutional amendments for women in India
Also, See:
| Wonder Women in the Civil Services of India |
| UN celebrates International Women’s Day for the first time |
Civil Services Exam aspirants can get the updated UPSC Syllabus for the prelims and mains examination at the linked article and accordingly start their preparation.
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