Viewpoint: Women are the engines of the Indian economy but our contribution is ignored
Tuesday, July 19, 2016
Women’s participation in work is an indicator of their status in a society. Paid work offers more opportunities for women’s agency, mobility and empowerment, and it usually leads to greater social recognition of the work that women do, whether paid or unpaid.
Where women’s work participation rates are relatively low, it is safe to say that the surrounding society isn’t giving women the capacities, opportunities and freedom to engage in productive work, nor recognising the vast amount of work performed by women as unpaid labour.
In India, where the economy has been growing rapidly over the past 30 years, recent statistics appear to show that women’s workforce participation rates (already low by international standards) have declined. Is there something about Indian society and the nature of economic growth that has led to this historically unprecedented combination of trends?
Source: The Guardian (link opens in a new window)
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