Swayam is a women’s rights organization committed to ending violence against women and children, based in Kolkata, India.

Swayam literally means ‘oneself’ and was set up to provide a holistic support service to women facing violence in their lives. Our strength is our empowering, woman-centred approach, which looks beyond a woman’s immediate need for support and encourages her to become self-confident, self-sufficient and self-reliant. We believe that each individual possesses an inner strength to counter obstacles and thus emerge with renewed self-confidence as a stronger, more complete person.

Through our co-ordinated programme of research and awareness-raising, we work to challenge the societal norms and values that perpetuate violence against women and to influence public policy decisions that affect women’s rights. We believe in the power of collective organisation, and much of our work is done in collaboration with other organisations and networks.