ANNOUNCEMENTS
This is an impact assessment study of rural development programmes offered by Swades foundation in the state of Maharashtra. The level of development or the impact of the programmes has been assessed in terms of quality of life of the beneficiaries. The foundation of the study lies in developing a quality of life framework and measurement indicators on the basis of which inferences were drawn on the quality of life status of the beneficiary households. To develop a quality of life framework in the context of the study, a participatory methodology was followed which involved the community itself in the conceptualization of the term ‘quality of life’. Based on the quality of life framework, quality of life scores were assigned to each of the sample households before and after the year of intervention by the organization to capture any changes experienced in the quality of life of the beneficiary households due to the services of the organization. Ultimately, the impact of the programmes was captured in terms of the changes experienced by the beneficiary households on their quality of life.
Keywords: Quality of Life, Rural Development, Impact Assessment.
