Women Entrepreneurs and Micro-Entrepreneurship: An Indian Study

Many developing countries are experiencing a state of transition. They are striving to move from a subsistence-oriented, tightly integrated and an inward looking local economy to a surplus seeking, market led and outward looking economy. One strategy that could make this possible is the emergence of a multitude of small scale and micro enterprises. This requires building up of a wide base of population capable of exhibiting enhanced entrepreneurial behavior. In recent years for a developing country, micro-entrepreneurial ventures are considered a very critical factor for developing the foundation of a struggling economy. Their entrepreneurial ventures can help both the urban and the rural population through creation of jobs – a rescue out of unemployment and poverty – and can thereby impact skill development, self-esteem and self-sufficiency. This can certainly contribute to the overall development of the economy. Women are almost one half of the world’s population having enormous potential but being underutilized or unutilized for the economic development of the nation. Entrepreneurship among women is a recent phenomenon. In a developing country like India, many women, both in urban and rural areas, are coming out now with latent entrepreneurial talents to start micro-ventures. So there is need to strengthen and streamline their role for development of various sectors by harnessing their power for nation building and accelerated economic growth.

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