Interface-Dialogue Women and Government :: Round Table Conference
-Date : 16 November 2012 -
Constitution Club, New Delhi

Round Table Conference

INTERFACE-Dialogue Women and Government
Sub-theme 1: Strategizing To Ensure Land Ownership for Women

16 November 2012, Board Room, Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, New Delhi, 10.00 am to 4.00 pm

Governance can be seen as the exercise of economic, political and administrative authority to manage a country's affairs at all levels. It comprises the mechanisms, processes and institutions through which citizens and groups articulate their interests, exercise their legal rights, meet their obligations and mediate their differences.

Women face numerous obstacles in achieving representation in governance. Their participation has been limited by the assumption that women’s proper sphere is the “private” sphere. Whereas the “public” domain is one of political authority and contestation, the “private” realm is associated with the family and the home. By relegating women to the private sphere, their ability to enter the political arena is curtailed. With only 10.8 per cent of women representation in the Lok Sabha and 10.3 per cent in the Rajya Sabha, India ranks 98 in the world, according to the data released by the Inter-Parliamentary Union (IPU), an international group that works for promoting democracy, peace and co-operation in the world.In order to bring changes to socio-economic and political processes, women need to interface/dialogue with government at all levels.

The economic reality that Indian women possess less than 1% of agricultural land and few have control over own lands, led IWID to explore strategies to ensure agricultural land for rural women with ‘access and control’ over land. IWID identified more than individual ownership, collective farming by women will be an effective strategy towards ‘access and control’ of land by women and to build stronger ‘women alliance/unity’ which also will be a good strategy to build ‘Women Farmers’ body, an important political capacity of rural women.

India has signed in CEDAW and pledged to eliminate discrimination against women through plans, schemes, policy and legislation. It is important to lobby with Govt. to negotiate for rural women.

The National campaign for Women Farmers and Collective farming serves as a bridge between illiterate exploited rural women and educated sensitive urban women. This bridge will strengthen women alliance/unity to negotiate space in governance and bring equality to women

It is important to build a strong women forum/ group to negotiate and create space to lobby for land rights for women in the capital city of India.

In order to bring changes to socio-economic and political processes, women need to interface/dialogue with government at all levels. In order to do this; we are convening a one day round table conference on the topic “INTERFACE-Dialogue Women and Government:Sub-theme 1: Strategizing To Ensure Land Ownership for Women” on 16th November at Board Room, Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, New Delhi.

For more information, kindly contact:

Ms Binalakshmi Nepram
Founder, Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network
Convenor, Northeast Women Initiatives for Peace
Email: [email protected]

Dr.Neelavalli, Ph.D
Director, Initiatives: Women In Development
Email: [email protected]

PROGRAMME SCHEDULE

Round Table conference
INTERFACE-Dialogue Women and Government
Sub-theme 1: Strategizing To Ensure Land Ownership for Women

Date: 16 November 2012
Times: 10.00 am to 4.00 pm
Venue: Board Room, Constitution Club, Rafi Marg, New Delhi

Organised By
Initiatives: Women in Development (IWID) in collaboration with Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network, Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace , SANLAAP &Joint Women's Programme

9.30 am Registration Starts
9.45am INAUGURAL SESSION: Women & Government
Chair by Ms. Indrani Sinha ,Founder Member and Director,
SANLAAP & President, IWID

10.00am Welcome address by Ms Binalakshmi Nepram, Founder, Manipur Women Gun Survivors Network & Convenor, Northeast India Women Initiative for Peace
10.15am Statement by Dr Neelavali, Director, Initiatives: Women in Development(IWID)
10.30am Inaugural of the event by Chief Guest Shri Mani Shankar Aiyar, Honourable Member of Parliament and former Minister Panchayati Raj
10.45am Statement by Guest of Honour Ms.Rashmi Singh
Executive Director, National Mission for Empowerment of Women.

11.00am Statement by Dr. Reena Marwah, Secretary General, Association of Asia Scholars
11.15am Statement by Ms. Anne Marchal , EU Political Counsellor
11.30am Statementby Dr. Jyotsna Chatterji, Director & Secretary , Joint Women's Programme
11.45am Statement by Dr. Charu Wali Khanna, Member, National Commission for Women

12.00am Statement by Dr Anuradha Chenoy, Professor, Jawaharlal Nehru University.
12.15pm Statement by Dr Manpreet Sethi, Senior Fellow, Centre for Air Power Studies
12.30pm Statement by Mr Ravinder Pal Singh, Former Senior Fellow University of Stockholm

12.30pm to 1.30 pm Light Refreshments

1.30pm Session-II:Strategizing To Ensure Land Ownership for Women
Chair by Dr Neelavali, Director, Initiatives: Women in Development(IWID)
1.45pm Prof. Susheela Bhan, Director, The Institute of Peace Research and Action.

2.00pm Staement by Dr. Deepa Ahluwalia, Sr. Project Advisor, National Mission for Empowerment of Women.
2.15pm Statement by Ms.Anju Talukdar, Executive Director, Multiple Action Research Group.
2.30pm Statement by Ms.M Shimray , Head of Gender Department, Caritas India
2.45pm Statement by Ms.Sagari Chhabra, Writer, Film Director and Social Activist.

3.00pm Statement by Dr. Mahesh K Arora, Director, Disaster Management and Health Consultant, India
3.15pm Statement by Mr.P.Dhanunjay, Project Director, The Tmes Association
3.30pm Statement by Ms Ninglun, Journalist, Sangai Express, Newspaper Manipur or INSAF
3.45pm Discussion

4.00pm Vote of Thanks by A. Majaiibungo Meetei, Team Leader, Research and Advocacy, Control Arms Foundation of India.