Women form only 25 pc of India's workforce against 49 pc globally Wadhwani Foundation

    Kolkata, Nov 19 (PTI) Only a quarter of India's
workforce is female as against a global average of 49 per cent
and the need of the hour is to unlock the untapped potential
of women entrepreneurs, the Wadhwani Foundation, a not-for-
profit organisation, said on the occasion of Women's
Entrepreneurship Day on Thursday.
    It is clear that India's growing entrepreneurial
landscape has left behind women and these entrepreneurs should
be provided with a support system comprising an integrated
policy framework with equal focus on rural India, said the
organisation engaged in development of entrepreneurial
ecosystem in India and other emerging economies.
    However, "With women comprising just 14 per cent of
the total entreprenual base in India, this is India's big
chance to tap into the precious resource of women
entrepreneurs so as to realise their true potential," Wadhwani
Foundation president and CEO Ajay Kela, said in a statement.
    "Of the 63 million MSMEs in India, only six per cent
are women-led, a criminal waste of talent. Growth driving,
business-friendly skills such as relationship building,
emotional intelligence, and multitasking are second nature to
women," the statement said.
    Leveraging India's vast talent pool of women and not
allowing it to be frittered away, especially at a time when
businesses are facing a severe talent crunch could be
transformational for the Indian economic economy and job
creation, it said.
    The Wadhwani Foundation was set up by US-based
entrepreneur Dr Romesh Wadhwani. PTI BSM
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(This story has not been edited by THE WEEK and is auto-generated from PTI)