Do Empowerment Programmes Actually Empower Women?

Women are powerless, disadvantaged and their access to resources and ownership of properties are minimal in most of the developing countries. In order to empower women in those developing societies, many empowerment programmes like microfinance, political mobilization, and providing education opportunities are in place. Even the notion of women’s empowerment is also included in the Millennium Development Goals. The paper tries to examine the different empowerment programmes along with their successes and limitations towards empowering women. It is evident from the study that the result of empowerment programmes is mixed. The empowerment programmes significantly contribute to women’s empowerment but do not empower all women in all situations and equally. Empowerment is also related to the determination of the women themselves.