3 L'S OF EMPOWERMENT BY CHRISTINE LAGARDE

THE 3 L'S OF EMPOWERMENT- MALAYALAM MEANING

The 3 Ls of Empowerment -Summary

Christine Lagarde in her speech The 3Ls of Empowerment highlights the importance of women's place in today's world. She suggests a 3L approach towards ensuring women's empowerment around the globe. The 3 Ls stand for learning, labour and leadership. Education is the basis upon which any change can be built. She stresses the need for educating the girls. Education helps women to realize their power and to break the shackles of exclusion.

Labour enables women to flourish and achieve their true potential. When women discover their true ability they will gain enough confidence to match their competence. She pleads for ensuring equal pay for equal work for women and to eliminate gender-gap in work participation. More job opportunities are to be opened for women. Property of inheritance law should be monitored so that there is no discrimination against women. Women can achieve economic independence by providing loans to them.

Leadership is another important thing in empowering women. It enables them to rise and fulfil their innate abilities and talents. They are capable of making good decision logically and handle matters with responsibility.

Women must have the confidence to come out of their comfort zones and face challenges. They should be ready to dare the difference. Lagarde envisions a world where each woman can achieve her true potential without any discrimination or prejudice.

TEXTUAL QUESTIONS

1. What are the three essentials of for empowerment?

   The three essentials of women empowerment are learning, labour and leadership.

2. What is the role of learning in empowering women?

Learning helps women to help themselves and break the shackles of exclusion.

3. How can we promote more opportunities for women in the workplace?

More opportunities can be promoted for women in the workplace by changing laws in support of women and by protecting them from discrimination. Moreover, we need to provide greater access to credit to help them achieve economic independence. 

 PARAGRAPH QUESTIONS

1. Role of educated empowered women in building a strong nation

The role of women in building a strong nation is quite pivotal. A nation is made strong by strong citizens, and their all-round strength is developed through education.   The economic growth of the country cannot progress while denying women their rights and opportunities.  Women figure half of a nation’s population; and if that half remains illiterate, how can that nation think of building a strong nation?

In all the strong nations in the world, the number of educated women is quite high. We know that in the present world, education is of great importance. Illiteracy and the suppression of women are the most relevant reasons why India is not developing fast enough. No country can progress if it isolates 50% of its population. Even educated women are not allowed to work which is a great disadvantage to the nation.

There is a very famous saying in Africa which says, 'If you educate a man, you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a woman.' In the light of the above-mentioned axiom, empowering the women with education is the best and the wisest way a nation can empower itself.

India is a fast-developing country. The goal of complete advancement is not possible until each and every Indian becomes not only highly educated but also highly skilled. This task can only be accomplished with women’s education and contributions. So, empowering women with education is the best investment a nation can make. 

2. What is the role of learning, labour and leadership skills in making a woman liberated?

Education is the foundation upon which any change is built. Learning helps women to help themselves and break from the shackles of exclusion. As the African adage says that through the education of a girl, we can change the whole village.

Labour helps women to develop and achieve their true potential. The discrimination and lack of opportunities in the workplace should end. Women should be paid equally as men for the same work. This way they can help the nation in flourishing its economy. 

Leadership quality enables women to rise and fulfil their innate abilities and talents. women who are confident can make stern decisions and implement them which will prosper the nation. they should come out of their comfort zones and make full use of their abilities. This way we can build a better world. 

3. "Women should step out their comfort zones." Discuss.

Women generally are preferred to live comfortably in their home and not work outside. This has been the tradition in our country for years. But that time has gone. A developing country demands its educated women to help in its growth. But an educated woman sitting at her home and doing her household chores cannot help the nation much.  When women lead, they tend to do as good a job as others, if not a better job. They are more likely to make decisions based on consensus-building, inclusion, compassion and with a focus on long term sustainability. But women sometimes lack the confidence to match their competence. So they need to change that mindset and reset the narrative in their favour. Some women though educated and qualified for a job tend to be comfortable with childbearing and child-rearing. They feel happy inside the home and never step out to express their talents. Their talents cannot be tapped in this context. Therefore, they should step out of their comfort zones and take up new responsibilities outside of their home. Only this can help them in succeeding.

4. Women sometimes lack the confidence to match their competence. Comment on the statement.

Women are gifted with various innate abilities and talents. But some of them do not have confidence within themselves to match their ability and potential with their male counterparts. They themselves feel that they lag behind men physically and mentally. In a society which was for a long time male-dominated, like ours, this feeling is bound to exist. In our society, most women are brought up to believe that they are fragile, weak and submissive. This is the chief cause for the lack of self-confidence in women. When women discover their potentials, they will gain enough confidence to match their competence. Then only women can contribute their due to the nation-building process.

5. How can we build self-confidence in women?

We can build self-confidence in women by the three L's of empowerment as Christine Lagarde puts it.

Women can become self-confident only when they are properly educated. Quality education and provision of opportunities will open before them a new world in which they are aware of their capabilities. So that women can secure respectful jobs and even become entrepreneurs. In addition to equal opportunities, equal wages and status also may be ensured in the workplace.  Role in administrative spheres, political leadership and entrepreneurship will give her more confidence. Women through education can understand that they have an equal place in society, have the right to claim for equal treatment. She must realize that there is an indomitable power in her that can make wonders. Women should be made aware of the sexual discrimination and taboos that exist in many parts of our country. When women become independent and self-reliant, they will definitely become confident.

ESSAY 1

1. Role of educated empowered women in building a strong nation.

The role of women in building a strong nation is quite pivotal. A nation is made strong by strong citizens, and all-round strength is developed through education. Women figure half of a nation’s population; and if that half remains ill-educated or illiterate, how can that nation think of erecting a strong nation?

Women are architects of society. They established the institution of family life, build the home, bring up the children and make them good citizens. Their strength in totality contributes to the making of an ideal family, ideal society and an ideal state.

The role of educated women in building a strong nation can be seen from the fact that all the strong nations in the world such as America, Canada, UK, France, Switzerland, Japan, South Korea, Russia, China, etc. the number of educated women is quite high. In all of these courtiers, the rate of educated women is 100%.

There is a very famous saying in Africa which says, 'If you educate a man, you educate an individual, but if you educate a woman, you educate a woman.' In the light of the above-mentioned adage powering the women with education is the best and the wisest way a nation can empower itself.

India is a fast developing country. But even after more than 60 years f independence India is lagging behind in several aspects due to illiteracy and suppression of women. Human resource is essential for development. But in India, the majority of the women population are unable to use their potential for nation-building due to poor education. w should break the glass ceiling and fight for their rights.

The goal of complete advancement is not possible until each and every Indian becomes not only highly educated but also highly skilled. This task can only be accomplished with women’s education and contributions. So, empowering women with education is the best investment a nation can make!
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ESSAY 2

Prepare a script of a speech on the topic 'Education is a key to Women Empowerment' to be delivered at a school assembly on the International Women's Day (March-8)

Honourable dignitaries on the dais, respected teachers and my dear friends,

"All I want is education, and I'm afraid of no one," says Malala Yusafzai, the Nobel Prize winner for Peace. Yes, Education makes women confident and free. It is the foundation upon which any change can be built. Education is a powerful weapon, as Nelson Mandela told, one can use to change the world. Education opens before them a world that offers them equal opportunities, equal treatment and equal privileges to women, a world which gives them dignity and self-respect. It can empower women to fulfil their aspirations and enable them to act as agents of social change.
If a girl is educated, she will have confidence. She will have employable skills. Employment will lead her to financial independence. Entrepreneurship will make her stronger and daring to take up new challenges.
As Malala Yousafzai, the Nobel Peace Prize winner says, “One child, one teacher, one book, and one pen can change the world.” And nowhere is it truer as in the case of women.
They – I mean, the educated women – will become leaders with the right mindset, making the right decisions at the right time. When women are put at the helm of affairs, they show more responsibility. As mothers, they care. They care about the future generations. They care about this earth. If a male leader takes you where you want to be, a female leader takes you where you ought to be.
If empowered, the hand that rocks the cradle can surely rule the world; complementing, contributing, creating a better tomorrow for everyone.

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POINTS TO REMEMBER

•   Christine Lagarde in her speech emphasizes the need for the empowerment of women.
•  She speaks of the 3Ls, i.e., ‘learning’,’ labour’ and leadership. These are essential factors for women empowerment.
• The greatest challenge of this century is the economic role of women in a rapidly changing world.
•   In some countries per capita income lags significantly because women are denied equal opportunity.
•  Women represent half the world’s population.
•   Education is the foundation upon which any change is built.
•    Learning helps women to help themselves and break the shackles of exclusion.
•    If you educate a boy, you train a man. If you educate a girl, you train a village (African Adage)
•    Labour facilitates women to flourish and achieve their true potentials.
•    Recent researches show that eliminating gender gaps will bring an increase in per capita income.
•    When women join the workforce, they often get low pay, low status and low- security jobs.
•    Basic norms of our society should be ‘equal pay for equal work’.
•   We should not show any discrimination against women in the case of property and inheritance laws.
•   Women can achieve greater economic independence by providing them greater access to credit.
•  Policies should be made to encourage education and health care of women
•  Leadership quality enables women to rise and fulfil their innate abilities and talents
•  Women make decisions based on consensus-building, inclusion, compassion and with a focus on long term sustainability.
• Sometimes, women lack confidence, but they should change that mindset and reset the narrative in their favour.
•  Women should be ready to ‘dare the difference’ by taking risks.
•  Women should go outside their comfort zones.
•  It is time to create a world where all women can meet their potential without impediment or prejudice.
•  If women dare the difference, the difference will deliver them.