Economy to grow slower unless more women join workforce: MeitY secretary

Time of India

5 days ago

Unless more women join the workforce, the pace of economic growth in India will remain slower than it optimally can be, ministry of electronics and information technology (MeitY) secretary S Krishnan said on Thursday. It also won't be possible to realise the government's aim of raising the share of the manufacturing sector in gross domestic product (GDP) to 25 percent, he added.Speaking at an event here, Krishnan argued that for states with an ageing population, such as Tamil Nadu, higher female participation in the labour force will be crucial in order to balance the demand and supply of jobs and worker availability."There has been a preference for women as employees in certain sectors for a long time. In the electronics sector, safety and conditions of work and stay are prime concerns for women employees," Krishnan said.Mobile component manufacturer Foxconn had faced major protests back in 2021 from about 3,000 women employees over unsuitable living conditions, Krishnan reminded. "This drove us, and recently, the state entity (in Tamil Nadu) built accommodations for 20,000 women employees close to the electronics cluster in Chennai under the PM Awas Yojana," he said. Many private investors have stepped in now to create dormitory-style accommodations for female employees in the electronics manufacturing sector as part of shelter funds where corporates can invest in housing, the secretary said.The emergence of factories with up to 40,000 workers has been possible in India due to the large number of women working in them, he stressed.The female labour force participation rate (FLFPR) in India has risen to 41.7 percent in 2023-24, up from 23.3 percent in 2017-18, according to the Economic Survey 2024-25. However, the figure is much lower considering women as employees.Organised by business services provider Quess Corp and not-for-profit Udaiti Foundation, the event focussed on ways to unlock women's potential in India's fast-growing blue-grey collar economy. Among sectors, information technology (IT) has the second-highest participation rate for women as employees, at 34 percent, an assessment by the Foundation shows. Based on the analysis of annual reports of 115 NSE-listed IT companies, the Foundation's 'Close the Gender Gap' data hub showed that the percentage of women in key managerial positions and board of directors was at 22%.