NewKerala.com

Davos Panel: Women Entrepreneurship as Core Economic Growth Engine

Leaders at a Davos panel convened by BRICS CCI WE and the Jharkhand government declared women's entrepreneurship a core economic strategy for growth and sustainability. Kalpana Murmu Soren detailed Jharkhand's large-scale interventions, including mobilizing millions of women through self-help groups and facilitating major credit linkages. Panelists from finance and ecosystem building emphasized the need for systemic collaboration to provide women entrepreneurs with better access to capital, networks, and visibility. The session concluded with a call to move beyond pilot programs and integrate women-led businesses into mainstream economic planning.

Key Points: Davos: Women Entrepreneurship Key to Growth, Say Leaders

  • Women-led enterprises drive resilient growth
  • Access to capital and networks is critical
  • Systemic collaboration needed over pilots
  • Platforms build essential community capital
3 min read

BRICS CCI WE and Jharkhand Govt position Women Entrepreneurship as growth engine at Davos

BRICS CCI WE & Jharkhand Govt panel at Davos positions women-led enterprises as central to resilient, inclusive, and sustainable economic growth.

"Women entrepreneurship is no longer a social discussion. It is a growth imperative. - Ruby Sinha"

Davos, January 23

Women's entrepreneurship must be treated as a core economic strategy, not a peripheral social initiative, leaders from government, finance and industry agreed at a high-level panel convened by the BRICS Chamber of Commerce and Industry Women Empowerment Vertical in association with the Government of Jharkhand at the World Economic Forum in Davos.

The panel, titled Women Entrepreneurship: Driving Growth and Building a Sustainable Economy, brought together policymakers, financial leaders and ecosystem builders from India and other BRICS+ nations to examine how women-led enterprises can unlock resilient, inclusive and sustainable growth at a time of global economic uncertainty and cautious capital.

Opening the discussion at the Jharkhand Pavilion, which marked the state's debut at Davos alongside the launch of its Vision 2050 roadmap, Kalpana Murmu Soren, Member of the Jharkhand Legislative Assembly and Chairperson of the Women and Child Development Committee, outlined how women's empowerment through entrepreneurship has been embedded into Jharkhand's long-term development agenda.

"To make society stronger, we must first make our women stronger. In Jharkhand, women are not seen as invisible or unpaid contributors. Through self-help groups, education, skill development and credit linkages, they are becoming economic actors with dignity and confidence," said Soren.

She highlighted the scale of the state's women-focused interventions, including more than 3.4 million women mobilised through self-help groups, extensive livelihood programmes, and credit linkages exceeding USD 650 million.

Soren also underlined the government's focus on education, skills and early intervention to ensure that women can move from support schemes to sustainable enterprise creation.

Moderating the session, Ruby Sinha, President, BRICS CCI Women Empowerment (BRICS CCI WE) and Founder, SheAtWork positioned women entrepreneurship as a growth and competitiveness imperative for BRICS and emerging economies.

"Women entrepreneurship is no longer a social discussion. It is a growth imperative. Women entrepreneurs are building capital-efficient, locally rooted businesses that create jobs and resilience. But to scale, they need access, visibility and trust. That requires sharper collaboration between policymakers, capital providers, platforms and the media. Progress will depend not on isolated success stories, but on systems that are intentionally built to recognise, resource and reward women entrepreneurs at scale," said Sinha.

Geovana Quadros, Founder of Mulheres Inspiradoras, one of Latin America's largest women leadership platforms and a partner of UN Women in Brazil, stressed that women's entrepreneurial journeys are often solitary, limiting access to capital, mentorship and influence.

"When women grow alone, progress is slow. Platforms create community capital. They give women access to power, networks and shared learning, which is essential if entrepreneurship is to deliver growth with sustainability," Quadros said.

Addressing the capital dimension, Fabio Maeda, Chief Financial Officer of Banco da Amazonia, a Brazilian federal development bank focused on sustainable economic growth in the Amazon region, said, "Improving access to finance for women entrepreneurs requires coordinated action across the ecosystem rather than isolated lending decisions. Banks work on risk and return, but risk can be reduced when governments, financial institutions and platforms act together," Maeda said.

"Guarantee mechanisms, partnerships and policy alignment are practical tools to unlock credit for women entrepreneurs without compromising financial discipline."

Luhan Vaz, President of Norema Group and Partner at Maius, a global project finance and project advisory firm, said, "Persistent structural barriers prevent women-led enterprises from scaling despite strong fundamentals. Women-led businesses often present stronger, more disciplined projects. The real challenge is access to the right networks and capital. When advisors, investors and partners actively support women founders, scale becomes possible."

The panel concluded with a shared call for moving beyond pilot programmes and intent-led initiatives toward systemic, scalable collaboration that places women-led enterprises firmly within mainstream economic growth strategies.

- ANI

Share this article:

Reader Comments

R
Rohit P
Ruby Sinha made a crucial point. Women's entrepreneurship is about GDP growth, not just social welfare. In India, if we can truly unlock the potential of our women entrepreneurs, it will be a bigger economic boost than any foreign investment. Need more action on the ground now.
A
Aman W
Good discussions, but I hope this leads to real change. We hear these talks every year at Davos. The problem in India is still access to capital for women from smaller towns. Banks need simpler processes, not just big announcements.
S
Sarah B
The emphasis on "community capital" and platforms by Geovana is so true. In my experience, women entrepreneurs in India often lack the old boys' network. Creating strong, formal networks for mentorship and funding is the key. Great to see BRICS nations collaborating on this.
K
Karthik V
Vision 2050 for Jharkhand including women at its core is a smart move. Empowering rural women through SHGs has a multiplier effect on education, health, and local economy. Hope other states present their models too. Jai Jharkhand!
N
Nisha Z
As a woman who started a small business, I relate to the "solitary journey" mentioned. Family support is one thing, but systemic support from banks and government is another. Fabio Maeda's point about guarantee mechanisms is practical. Can we implement similar schemes pan-India? 🤔

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

Leave a Comment

Minimum 50 characters 0/50