Area Networking and Development Initiatives
Rs. 6,269,920 awarded over six years to Area Networking and Development Initiatives (ANANDI)
Anandi is a feminist organisation that works to strengthen democratic processes to favour women and to combat the forces of violence and injustice against women. Paul Hamlyn Foundation’s initial grant to Anandi was to enable the effective implementation of the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (NREGA) in six Gram Panchayats of Gujarat. This was implemented successfully, with Anandi using its skills and perspective to ensure basic facilities at NREGA worksites, to enable NREGA to reach particularly needy sections of the community such as pregnant women, the aged and the disabled, and to see that social audit processes were observed rigorously.
The Foundation is now supporting an effort to enable people to realise their entitlements from the state – such as housing, work, health, food and social security – and to access benefits from the state’s social development schemes.
The current project extends to 120 villages in the districts of Panchmahals and Dahod in the western Indian state of Gujarat.
“Anandi sees its role as bringing a woman’s perspective into large government programmes, and ensuring that they reach the most needy beneficiaries,” says Neeta Hardikar, one of Anandi’s founder directors.
A team from PHF visited Anandi in March 2011 and attended a women’s day meeting at Gogamba, where more than 1,200 tribal women interacted with political functionaries and government servants.
