Children and Youths in Dharavi ́s rise to Empowerment : - from a NGO perspective

Abstract: This dissertation view a sample of projects conducted by two different non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in Dharavi, a slum-area in Mumbai, India, and examines how they con-tribute to children and youth ́s social development and empowerment. Due to the large global population of children and youths, as well as that a large percentage of the world ́s inhabitants reside in slum-areas, it is considered of importance to gain information regarding the social work that isbeing conducted with the focus. The field work is carried out through interviews and observations in the area. The focus is five different projects that are conducted by two different NGOs in Mumbai. This dissertation display how the two theories, empowerment and social development, are connected to each other as well as the positive impact the NGOs have on the participating childrenand youths. The findings of the field work lead to an understand-ing in which ways NGOs can help children and youths to reachempowerment and how they contribute to the social development of the participants. The research shows the impact the organizations activities have on the children and youths lives.