A level playing field and helping women start small businesses can help accelerate women’s entrepreneurship overall.
Entrepreneurship by women in India is no longer an obscure concept and has increased in recent years. From veterans like Kiran Mazumdar Shaw and Indra Nooyi to new names like Richa Kar from Zivame, Falguni Nayar from Nykaa, Aditi Gupta from Menstrupedia, etc., women today are realizing their potential and breaking free from the shackles of gender politics and bias.
Global evidence supports the fact that women have performed exceptionally well in a variety of fields such as academia, politics, administration, social work, etc. Entering the industry and running successful companies was the next step in changing the economic and social development of the country for future generations of women.
Where do women-owned companies stand today?
According to a report by Google and Bain & Company, 13.5 to 15.7 million women-owned businesses make up about 20% of all businesses in the country today. This is a 6% increase from 14% over the past decade after overcoming several constraints that stand in the way of women entrepreneurs and preventing them from reaching their full potential.
If female entrepreneurship accelerates to its full quality and quantity, it can create around 30 million women-owned businesses and potentially transform the country’s employment environment, with 150-170 million new jobs, according to the study.
Why female entrepreneurship?
From increasing the life expectancy of women in the workforce to gender-specific innovations, from improving wage equality and productivity to alleviating poverty and expanding the country’s economy, “Investing in women creates economic and social prosperity by providing gradual growth Enable social change from high fertility, low education and poor health, to make more conscious reproductive choices, higher education and better health for yourself and the family, ”the report says.
A level playing field and helping women start small businesses can help accelerate women’s entrepreneurship overall. When women become active contributors, they invest not only in their families, their homes, but also in the communities, which helps create measurable impact.
The way forward
Ultimately, available capital is one of the most important factors in starting a business. While investors claim to be statistically investing in ideas, a skewed pattern has been observed in the capital funding of women-led startups and companies. However, new businesses are now counting on great ideas without gender affecting their judgment.
From global millennial venture capital firms like SoGal Ventures to the SAHA Fund, the tide is changing on the funding available for women entrepreneurs. Apart from that, mentoring makes a significant contribution to the development and expansion of networks. Getting the right help formulating their ambitions or learning to promote and negotiate can help women entrepreneurs understand the gaps in their skills.
There are mentoring and qualification initiatives in India that include finance and qualification programs run by foundations like Mann Deshi. Almost 90,000 women entrepreneurs in rural areas have received a total of 500 crores. Another notable program is TiE Global’s All-India Road Show for Women Economic Empowerment Through Entrepreneurship (AIRSWEEE), which is about promoting entrepreneurship among women in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities in India.
A concerted effort by the government and volunteer organizations is needed to capitalize on the unrecognized and neglected strengths in women-run businesses. By integrating it into the process of industrial development, added value can be created, especially for the development of small industries in the country.
