What can India teach us about gender equality?

A central driver of economic growth is the increased role of women. This comes in many forms: increased female labor force participation, reduced discrimination and wage differentials that encourage greater effort, and improved advancement practices that promote talented women into leadership and managerial roles. Indeed, empowering half of the potential workforce will have significant economic benefits that goes beyond promoting just gender equality.

Yet, gender disparities in women’s economic participation have remained deep and persistent. What explains these gender disparities? Is it poor infrastructure, limited education, or the composition of the labor force and industries? Or is it deficiencies in social and business networks and a low share of incumbent female entrepreneurs? We examined these questions using plant level data in India with a focus on the spatial determinants of female entrepreneurship in the manufacturing and services sectors.

Read More