1. The document discusses women entrepreneurship in India, defining it and outlining some of the key functions and challenges faced by women entrepreneurs. 2. It notes that women entrepreneurs make up only about 9% of total entrepreneurs in India and face difficulties in accessing financing, raw materials, and mobility. 3. The government and other organizations have implemented various programs and policies to promote women's entrepreneurship and economic participation over time.

1. J,HARIPRIYA
ASSISTANT PROFESSOR
DEPARTMENT OF COMMERCE(HONS)
ETHIRAJ COLLEGE FOR WOMEN

2. What is Women Entrepreneurship ?
• Women entrepreneur may be defined as a woman or group of women who
initiate, organize, and run a business enterprise.
• In terms of Schumpeterian concept of innovative entrepreneurs, women
who innovate, imitate or adopt a business activity are called “Women
Entrepreneurs”.
• The Government of India (GOI2006) has defined women entrepreneur as
“an enterprise owned and controlled by a women having a minimum
financial interest of 51 per cent of the capital and giving at least 51 per cent
of the employment generated in the enterprise to women.”

8. FUNCTIONS OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURS
Frederick Harbison (1956) has enumerated the
following five functions of a woman entrepreneur:
Exploration of the prospects of starting a new
business enterprise.
Undertaking of risks and the handling of
economic uncertainties involved in business.
 Introduction of innovations or imitation of
innovations.
Coordination, administration and control.
Supervision and leadership

10. GROWTH OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURSHIP IN INDIA

11. The low literacy rate (40%),
low work participation rate (28%) and
low urban population share (10%) of women as
compared to 60%, 52% and 18% respectively of
their male counterparts well confirm their
disadvantageous position in the Indian society

12. • The development of women entrepreneurship
is expectedly low in the country.
• This is well indicated by a dismally low level
of women (5.2%) in total self-employed
persons in the country (Gupta and Khanka
1996).
• Further, women entrepreneurs in India
accounted for 9.01% of the total 1.70 million
entrepreneurs in the country during 1988-89
(Desai 1992).

14. Frederick Harbison (1956)-five functions of a
woman entrepreneur:
1. Exploration of the prospects of starting a new
business enterprise.
2. Undertaking of risks and the handling of economic
uncertainties involved in business.
3. Introduction of innovations or imitation of
innovations.
4. Coordination, administration and control.
5. Supervision and leadership.

15. Categories of Women Entrepreneurs
• Women in organized & unorganized sector
• Women in traditional & modern industries
• Women in urban & rural areas
• Women in large scale and small scale industries.
• Single women and joint venture.

16. Categories of Women Entrepreneurs in
Practice in India
First Category
• Established in big cities
• Having higher level technical & professional qualifications
• Non traditional Items
• Sound financial positions
Second Category
• Established in cities and towns
• Having sufficient education
• Both traditional and nontraditional items
• Undertaking women services-kindergarten, crèches, beauty parlors, health
clinic etc

17. Third Category
• Illiterate women
• Financially week
• Involved in family business such as Agriculture, Horticulture, Animal
Husbandry, Dairy, Fisheries, Agro Forestry, Handloom, Power loom etc.

19. Why do Women Take-up Employment?
• Push Factors
– Death of bread winner
– Sudden fall in family income
– Permanent inadequacy in income of the family
• Pull Factors
– Women’s desire to evaluate their talent
– To utilize their free time or education
– Need and perception of Women’s Liberation, Equity etc.
– To gain recognition, importance and social status.
– To get economic independence

20. • Women entrepreneurs manufacturing solar cookers in Gujarat,
• small foundries in Maharashtra and
• T.V. capacitors in Odisha have proved beyond doubt that given the
opportunities, they can excel their male counterparts (Moore and
Buttner 1997).
• Smt. Sumati Morarji (Shipping Corporation),
• Smt. Yamutai Kirloskar (Mahila Udyog Limited),
• Smt. Neena Malhotra (Exports),
• Kiran Majumdar Shaw (Bio-technology)
• Naina Lal Kidwai (Banking),
• Jaswantiben Jarnnadas Popat (Food), and
• Smt. Shahnaz Hussain (Beauty Clinic)
are some exemplary names of successful and accomplished women
entrepreneurs in our country.

21. • Dominate three important sub-sectors,
constituting over
• 80 per cent of the employees in textile, clothing
and leather production;
• 75 per cent in food, beverages and tobacco
production; and
• over 60 per cent in wood and wood processing
(quoted by Bhargav (2007).
• Besides, they also act as micro-entrepreneurs and
traders in agri-business.

23. PROBLEMS OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURS

24. Problem of Finance
Firstly, women do not
generally have property on
their names to use them as
collateral for obtaining funds
from external sources. Thus,
their access to the external
sources of funds is limited.
Secondly, the banks also
consider women less credit-
worthy and discourage
women borrowers on the
belief that they can at any
time leave their business

25. Scarcity of Raw Material
• the high prices of raw
material, on the one
hand, and getting raw
material at the minimum
of discount, on the other
• Stiff Competition
Women entrepreneurs
• canvassing and
advertisement.

26. Limited Mobility
Officials humiliating
attitude towards women
compels them to give up
idea

27. Family Ties
• women’s duty to look
after the children and
other members of the
family
• she has to strike a fine
balance between her
business and family.
• Support and approval of
husbands seem necessary
condition for women’s
entry into business.

28. Lack of Education
• In India, around three-
fifths (60%) of women
are still illiterate.
Illiteracy is the root
cause of socio-economic
problems
• women are not aware of
business, technology
and market knowledge.

29. Male- Dominated Society:
• women are looked upon
as alba, i.e, weak in all
respects
• Women suffer from
male reservations about
a women’s role, ability
and capacity
• women are not treated
equal to men

30. Low Risk Bearing Ability
• They are less educated
and economically not
self-dependent.
• All these reduce their
ability to bear risk
involved in running an
enterprise

31. DEVELOPING WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURSHIP

32. • UNIDO
• World Conference of the United Nations Decade
for Women
• First National Conference of Women
Entrepreneurs held at New Delhi Second
International Conference of Women
Entrepreneurs organized by the National Alliance
of Young Entrepreneurs (NAYE) held at New
Delhi
• Industrial Policy 1991

33. . The Government moved a step forward in the Seventh Five Year
Plan by including a special chapter on Integration of Women in
Development
• To treat women as specific target groups in all development
programmes.
• To devise and diversify vocational training facilities for
women to suit their varied needs and skills. |
• To promote appropriate technologies to improve their
efficiency and productivity.
• To provide assistance for marketing their products.
• To involve women in decision-making process.

34. There are several institutional arrangements both at the
centre and the state levels like
nationalized banks,
state financial corporations,
state industrial corporations,
district industry centres and
voluntary agencies like FICCI’s Ladies Organisation
(FLO),
National Alliance of Young Entrepreneurs (NAYE)
which have been engaged in protecting and developing
women entrepreneurs in the country.

35. Ways to Develop Women Entrepreneurs
1. Consider women as specific target group for all developmental
programmers.
2. Better educational facilities and schemes should be extended to women
folk from government part.
3. Adequate training program on management skills to be provided to
women community.
4. Encourage women's participation in decision-making.
5. Vocational training to be extended to women community that enables
them to understand the production process and production management.

36. LIMITATIONS OF WOMEN
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
• Gender stereotyped perception like self, lack of confidence,
and limitations to risk-taking
• Indian women are known as housewives bearing heavy
domestic commitments
• Low literacy rate of women, lack of access to education
• As women generally lack in collateral, they find it difficult to
obtain even small amounts from the banks.