Empowering women entrepreneurs to help India grow

Happy Woman designer sewing fabrics with assistant

The winds of change are upon us. In spite of facing years of economic repression, social strictures and restricted access to finance and education, women entrepreneurs, who numbered about 8 million at the time of the Economic Survey in 2011, have now grown to 130 million. They are increasingly leveraging digital media to grab market share, and foraying into traditionally male-dominated industries, like sports, construction, and technology. To fully realise the potential of women entrepreneurship, which could create more than a quarter of the jobs India needs, new economic initiatives are required to address gender biases in financing and the resulting disparities. And IREP Credit Capital’s ‘Women Entrepreneur Campaign’ is a timely reminder of what can be achieved through a clear vision and focussed products.

A New Dawn

A toxic mix of circumstances have kept women from accessing finance in India, leaving 79% of women entrepreneurs to resort to self-financing, according to the sixth Economic Census in 2014. A separate study conducted by IFC pegged the total financing gap for women-led MSMEs at Rs. 6.37 trillion. However, these numbers barely tell the story of financial disempowerment, biased financing practices, and lack of collaterals that cause this sorry state of affairs. But they do help make the case for IREP’s ‘Women Entrepreneurship Campaign’, which aims to reverse the tide by offering women entrepreneurs business loans at rates up to 4% lower than IREP’s existing interest rates in Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka and Telangana.

Building on their reputation as a social impact-driven NBFC, with a special focus on financial inclusion, IREP Credit Capital has a burgeoning list of applicants for its secured business loans. Led by Mr. Naresh Naik, a Real Estate and Financial Services veteran, IREP now aims to fulfil its agenda for financial inclusion by serving the hitherto ignored financing needs of women entrepreneurs across South India. As Mr. Naresh Naik himself explains, “We wish to provide women with the financial backing they need to kickstart their business ventures, and engage them in decision making, thereby encouraging gender equality. Through these efforts, we expect to achieve our long-term target of a diversified loan book, with 60% of it directed at women entrepreneurs.”

Making A Mark

The ‘Women Entrepreneurship Campaign’ has had an immediate impact. Almost 50% of loans disbursed by IREP during the month of November were to women entrepreneurs. It showcased the immense entrepreneurial capacity of women in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, and the extent to which it had remained underserved. The ‘Women Entrepreneurship Campaign’ also provides a good case study of the productivity and economic gains to be accrued from financial empowerment of women.

IREP Credit Capital has made a pioneering effort with the ‘Women Entrepreneurship Campaign’ that is sure to have long-term economic and social benefits. Besides, it also provides a framework for India’s financial ecosystem to adapt to and supplement the oncoming wave of financial inclusion. And through this core disruption, the company hopes to create a new paradigm of equal opportunities for all Indians, irrespective of their gender.

Moneycontrol journalists were not involved in the creation of the article