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Women's Empowerment: Beyond the Buzzword

Krähenmann, Lea Cynthia LU and Eriksson, Elin LU (2025) MIDM19 20251
Department of Human Geography
LUMID International Master programme in applied International Development and Management
Abstract
Despite the widespread implementation of women’s empowerment initiatives, research on how women understand and experience empowerment in their cultural and social contexts remains limited. With this gap especially evident in sub-Saharan Africa, where empowerment initiatives are common yet context-sensitive research remains limited, the present analysis critically examines how women involved in an Empowerment Project in Kwale County, Kenya, experience empowerment, and how these lived perspectives align with or diverge from those promoted by the Kenyan implementing NGO and its Swedish partner. Anchored in Kabeer’s (1999) conceptualization of empowerment and a decolonial feminist lens, the study adopts a qualitative methodology. It draws on... (More)
Despite the widespread implementation of women’s empowerment initiatives, research on how women understand and experience empowerment in their cultural and social contexts remains limited. With this gap especially evident in sub-Saharan Africa, where empowerment initiatives are common yet context-sensitive research remains limited, the present analysis critically examines how women involved in an Empowerment Project in Kwale County, Kenya, experience empowerment, and how these lived perspectives align with or diverge from those promoted by the Kenyan implementing NGO and its Swedish partner. Anchored in Kabeer’s (1999) conceptualization of empowerment and a decolonial feminist lens, the study adopts a qualitative methodology. It draws on focus group discussions with local participants, semi-structured interviews with project staff, complementary field immersion, and content analysis. Findings show that women viewed empowerment as relational and practical, focused on livelihood-generating capabilities, partly contrasting with the project’s emphasis on education, personal growth and community improvement. Although women were recognized as change agents, the project upholds traditional gender roles and increased expectations without addressing structural constraints, underscoring the need for more context-responsive, inclusive approaches. By foregrounding women’s lived experiences, this thesis offers a more culturally and locally-grounded perspective on development practice, challenging dominant empowerment paradigms. (Less)
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author
Krähenmann, Lea Cynthia LU and Eriksson, Elin LU
supervisor
organization
course
MIDM19 20251
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Women’s Empowerment, Project Implementation, Rural Kenya, Gender-roles, Decolonial Feminism, Context-sensitive Perspectives
language
English
id
9192169
date added to LUP
2025-06-11 13:08:44
date last changed
2025-06-11 13:08:44
@misc{9192169,
  abstract     = {{Despite the widespread implementation of women’s empowerment initiatives, research on how women understand and experience empowerment in their cultural and social contexts remains limited. With this gap especially evident in sub-Saharan Africa, where empowerment initiatives are common yet context-sensitive research remains limited, the present analysis critically examines how women involved in an Empowerment Project in Kwale County, Kenya, experience empowerment, and how these lived perspectives align with or diverge from those promoted by the Kenyan implementing NGO and its Swedish partner. Anchored in Kabeer’s (1999) conceptualization of empowerment and a decolonial feminist lens, the study adopts a qualitative methodology. It draws on focus group discussions with local participants, semi-structured interviews with project staff, complementary field immersion, and content analysis. Findings show that women viewed empowerment as relational and practical, focused on livelihood-generating capabilities, partly contrasting with the project’s emphasis on education, personal growth and community improvement. Although women were recognized as change agents, the project upholds traditional gender roles and increased expectations without addressing structural constraints, underscoring the need for more context-responsive, inclusive approaches. By foregrounding women’s lived experiences, this thesis offers a more culturally and locally-grounded perspective on development practice, challenging dominant empowerment paradigms.}},
  author       = {{Krähenmann, Lea Cynthia and Eriksson, Elin}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Women's Empowerment: Beyond the Buzzword}},
  year         = {{2025}},
}