Factors Affecting the Mobilization of Rural Women Through Sarhad Rural Support Program (Srsp) in District Peshawar

The present study examines the role of Sarhad Rural Support Program (SRSP) in gender development in rural villages of District Peshawar. To study the role of SRSP, data were collected from the women respondents of three villages of the study area. In all 60 respondents, representing 20% of the total household from the selected villages were contacted. Results show that the SRSP had introduced a number of interventions to mobilize women. Woman Community Organizations (WCOs) were established which were reported as the most primary source of motivation. Because of patriarchal nature of society; males, social workers, religious leaders and teachers were contacted to pave way for the formation of the WCOs. This enabled SRSP to form WCOs and contact the females. To accelerate social mobilization, the women community were sensitized through social organizers and interventions were designed and implemented that were based on societal needs. All these efforts mobilized the women to an extent where they started making decisions independently. In spite of concerted efforts of SRSP to mobilize women for socioeconomic development, a lot of work is still needed to make WCOs an independent and functional institution