{"id":25660,"date":"2022-10-20T11:30:00","date_gmt":"2022-10-20T06:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/?post_type=article&p=25660"},"modified":"2025-12-12T12:06:30","modified_gmt":"2025-12-12T06:36:30","slug":"mobilising-philanthropy-to-help-women-entrepreneurs-in-urban-india","status":"publish","type":"article","link":"https:\/\/idronline.org\/kn-in\/article\/gender\/mobilising-philanthropy-to-help-women-entrepreneurs-in-urban-india\/","title":{"rendered":"Mobilising philanthropy for women entrepreneurs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The extremely low participation of women in India’s labour force is not a new phenomenon. At 19 percent<\/a>, India was among the 11 countries with the lowest female labour force participation rates in 2021. Only 20.4 percent of enterprises in India are owned and operated by women. The country doesn’t do well in terms of the gender gap<\/a> either—it ranks 142nd out of 149 countries in women’s economic participation and opportunity.<\/p>

Women’s entrepreneurship—with its potential to contribute to job creation, GDP growth, and poverty alleviation—can help improve some of these abysmal numbers, provided we create an enabling environment for women-led businesses.<\/p>

To help address this gap, Asian Venture Philanthropy Network<\/a> (AVPN) commissioned a study<\/a> that maps the landscape of women’s entrepreneurship in urban and peri-urban India and identifies different archetypes of entrepreneurs and opportunities for collaboration.<\/p>

\"What<\/a><\/div>

The study was commissioned with support from JP Morgan<\/a> and led by the research team at LEAD at Krea University<\/a>. The research involved a review of relevant literature, including data from the National Sample Survey Organisation<\/a>, analysis of secondary data sources, and in-depth interviews with various key stakeholders. Here’s what the study found:<\/p>

Archetypes of women entrepreneurs<\/h3>

The report identifies four archetypes of women entrepreneurs in urban and peri-urban India. These are primarily categorised based on their monthly revenue:<\/p>

1. Striving\/subsistence entrepreneurs<\/h3>

With a monthly income of less than INR 10,000, striving\/subsistence entrepreneurs are women who primarily seek to contribute to household income. Their need for flexibility in order to balance care responsibilities and other constraints results in them predominantly operating their enterprises from home.<\/p>

2. Solopreneurs\/homepreneurs<\/h3>

These entrepreneurs have a median monthly income of INR 10,000–25,000. In addition to contributing to household income, this segment seeks to attain economic independence. Given their lack of access to collateral and mobility constraints, they mostly carry out their work from home as well.<\/p>

The above two archetypes account for close to two-thirds of the women entrepreneurs in urban areas. It is therefore critical that we understand them better and support their growth. <\/p>

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3. Conventional\/steadfast entrepreneurs<\/h3>

Conventional\/steadfast entrepreneurs have a relatively stable business income, with a monthly revenue of INR 25,000–75,000. Among these enterprises, 22 percent operate out of a fixed store and 15.3 percent possess formal registration. Helping them graduate to the next stage by enabling their access to appropriate interventions and opportunities is the big challenge.<\/p>

4. Opportunity entrepreneurs<\/h3>

With a median monthly revenue that exceeds INR 75,000, more than half of the entrepreneurs in this segment operate their enterprises out of a fixed store. In addition, 42.24 percent of them—as compared to the 15.27 percent in the conventional entrepreneur segment—lead registered enterprises. Lastly, approximately 28 percent of them have at least one employee that works for their enterprise.<\/p>

The gender divide is stark and debilitating for women<\/h3>

The report’s comparison of male and female entrepreneurs in urban and peri-urban areas reveals key differences between them. Firstly, a staggering 80.64 percent of entrepreneurs in these areas are men, which means that women entrepreneurs constitute less than a fifth of the market.<\/p>

The most significant difference however is the distribution of entrepreneurs across segments. The largest proportion (60.87 percent) of male entrepreneurs qualify as opportunity entrepreneurs—the most advanced archetype—whereas only a paltry 4 percent are subsistence\/striving entrepreneurs.<\/p>

This is in sharp contrast to women entrepreneurs, where a significant proportion—38.1 percent—fall within the subsistence\/striving segment. Only 16.7 percent of them have managed to grow their enterprises enough to qualify them as opportunity entrepreneurs.<\/p>

Major differences can also be observed in terms of their revenues and profits. However, interestingly, while male entrepreneurs earn a higher revenue across all segments, the profit margins of women entrepreneurs are consistently higher. This is despite a lower number of women entrepreneurs in the bottom three segments receiving loans. Additionally, across all segments, the women who do receive loans are often provided with less than half the amount that their male counterparts are able to borrow.<\/p>

Obstacles faced by women entrepreneurs<\/h3>

The lower number of women in the opportunity entrepreneur segment is primarily driven by the multifaceted challenges they face.<\/p>

1. Agency and norms<\/h3>

“There is a systemic exclusion that begins at the cradle. Being told consistently that she doesn’t belong, is not good enough, smart enough, or capable enough.”<\/em>—Naghma Mulla, EdelGive Foundation1<\/a><\/sup><\/p>