Some numbers hit you hard. For me, it is the data on women at work in India. According to the latest available data from Government of India, our women’s workforce participation dropped from 45% to 27% between  2005 and 2019. The World Economic Forum’s 2022 report ranks India 143rd out of 146 countries in women’s ‘Economic Participation and Opportunity’. A recent study by FSG under the Growing Livelihood Opportunities for Women (GLOW) programme covering 6,600 women reported that 85% of women said they needed permission from key decision-makers to be able to work. 

Where I stand today, I cannot be grateful enough for all the women who contributed towards my well-being on both professional and personal fronts. At Upaya, as we work towards supporting more women-founded enterprises and women jobholders from underserved communities, I recognise the privilege I enjoy even more. But what is also important to acknowledge is that with privilege comes responsibility. The responsibility to give back and provide the same support or even more that was offered to you. To recognise that women have to be the biggest agency for other women. 

Small but intentional steps can bring that much-needed domino effect for women to break  regressive economic, social and cultural norms. Efforts have to be intentional and concerted. In formal workplace settings, this could look like keeping networking events for women professionals or job fairs during the day instead of evenings, higher referral bonuses for women who bring in other women to join work, discounts on interests by investors when a firm reports of higher gender parity and non-financial disclosures on diversity ratios. 

In low-income communities and informal work settings, the challenge is more complex with the dual burden of poverty and gender. Local governance structures like the village panchayat or block administration must play a transformative role in building trust between families and potential employers. Civil society focusing on skill development and community mobilisation are also powerful propellants in bridging the gap. We must also invest in building women’s leadership in formal and informal bodies such as panchayats and municipal corporations. 

As women, we are our tribe; let’s lift each other. 

( Ministry of Statistical and Programmatic Implementation (MOSPI, Govt. of India), Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS-2018-19)