Livelihood
Security: Mathiben Sanghani
Traditional employment in the rural areas of Gujarat is based
upon natural resources. Given that this region is prone to
natural disasters such as droughts, cyclones and earthquakes,
reliance solely upon these activities results in insecure
livelihoods. Insecure livelihoods often force individuals
and families into migration or borrowing to ensure survival,
leading to a cycle of debt entrapment. There is a need, therefore,
to diversify income generating activities, thereby reducing
dependency on these less secure means of livelihood and lessening
the impact of natural disasters upon
The
Jeevika Livelihood Security Project for Earthquake Affected
Rural Households in Gujarat is working towards this end. Mathiben
Sanghani is one example of Jeevika’s livelihood security
work. Mathiben was born and raised in the village of Kuda.
Neither of her parents were educated, nor are her two brothers
and two sisters. Growing up, the family lived in a mud and
brick kuccha house, built on someone else’s land, with
no electricity, water or sanitation. Both her parents worked
on the nearby salt pans, where she too went to work at the
age of ten. At the age of fourteen she was married to an educated
man from Kuda and moved into another kuccha house. They continued
to work on the salt pans, and had three children, all of which
are educated. During the nine or so months of the year when
they were not working on the salt pans, they grew sesame on
her husband’s thirty acres of land, which is shared
with his four brothers. Shortly before the January 2001 earthquake,
her family moved into a new cement and brick pucca home.
Mathiben
joined SEWA after the January 2001 earthquake. She came in
contact with the organization through three savings groups
that had been set up in her village before the earthquake.
She decided to join because she wanted to save money, and
fast became the leader of a group of eleven women. Mathiben
recalled that it was very difficult in the beginning to get
the women to contribute regularly. They had many misconceptions
about saving and lacked trust in SEWA. She patiently worked
to correct these misconceptions, and secured an informal resolution
from the group members that everyone that joined was required
to save regularly for a minimum of five years. To date, everyone
in the group has saved minimum Rs. 800.
When
Jeevika was introduced to her village, Mathiben was selected
as a member of the Village Development Committee (VDC). She
is responsible for the village Tools and Equipment Library
that lends, at a nominally rate, the tools needed by the poor
to earn a livelihood. She has also undergone numerous trainings,
including savings and insurance, member education, leadership,
nursery, and alternative employment awareness. Based upon
her savings, Mathiben secured a loan of Rs. 2500 from her
group to start a small vegetable and snack shop. Using methods
she learnt in the alternative livelihood awareness training,
she prepares small snacks in her home for sale in the shop.
While the income from the shop was not enough to support her
family year round, combined with her earnings from salt farming
and her husband’s land, it produced a more stable and
secure income.
But
the ability of Mathiben’s family to earn a secure income
was seriously damaged not long after. It began when she and
her husband enrolled in a government-sponsored programme to
construct a well on their farm land. They received a loan
of Rs. 10,000 from the government and built a well, but the
water leveled turned out to be too low, and the well was inoperable.
So they were stuck with a large loan they could not repay,
while interest accumulated. In order to pay the government
back, they were forced to loan-lease their land to a local
landowner for Rs. 10,000. The deal was such that, in return
for the money lent, the farmer was allowed to use the land
for a period of one year. If the loan was not repaid by April,
then he was entitled to use the land for an additional year.
As the land was capable of producing approximately 100 tonnes
of sesame, and as the repayment date was set during a time
of year when salt farmers have little to no money, the terms
of the loan were definitely unfair, but Mathiben and her husband
were forced to accept nonetheless.
As if matters were not bad enough, the farmer who held Mathiben’s
land added an additional Rs. 7000 to the original loan amount,
claiming that he had incurred expense to clear brush from
the land. Mathiben was feeling hopeless, and turned to SEWA
as a last resort. She applied for and received a loan of Rs.
17,000. But this was not enough. On the day the loan was to
be repaid, she and her husband went to the farmer’s
home to free the land, together with SEWA fieldworkers. Upon
arrival, however, they were told that it was too late. It
was already 9pm, the day was over, and that they had to wait
yet another year for their land. Undeterred, SEWA decided
to get the village leadership involved, which in turn applied
pressure upon the farmer, who finally relented and accepted
repayment of the loan. Mathiben and her family were returned
their land and more secure livelihood.
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