Whalesbook
Women Lead Informal Manufacturing Growth
The latest data from the Annual Survey of Unincorporated Sector Enterprises (ASUSE) reveals that women are in strong leadership roles in India's informal manufacturing sector. In 2025, women led 60.4% of these businesses, up from 58% in 2024. This high representation also boosts employment for other women: nearly 72% of female-led firms hire at least one other woman. Earlier data showed overall female ownership in the informal sector around 17.4% in 2010-11, growing to about 26.2% by 2023-24.
Informal Trade Sector Falls Behind
In contrast, the informal trade sector presents a very different reality. Women led just 13.1% of informal trade businesses in 2025, a slight decrease from the year before and much lower than in manufacturing. This gap reflects wider patterns: women's ownership in informal trade rose slowly, reaching about 1 in 7 businesses by 2024, up from 1 in 10 in 2011. Government programs like the Pradhan Mantri Mudra Yojana and Stand-Up India aim to help by offering credit and support. However, reaching sectors with a long-standing gender gap needs ongoing effort.
Digital Gaps and Barriers for Women Entrepreneurs
While more informal businesses are adopting digital tools, with trade firms showing high internet use, this digital shift doesn't automatically mean fair progress for all women entrepreneurs. Issues like limited digital skills, difficulty accessing devices, and wider social and economic challenges, including restricted mobility and domestic duties, continue to block women's full participation and growth in online and traditional markets. Many women-led businesses remain very small, often run from home and unregistered, with no hired workers. This is a sharp contrast to male-led firms. Additionally, women in the informal sector often experience wage discrimination and are mainly in lower-paying jobs than men.
Deeper Challenges for Women-Led Businesses
While manufacturing numbers show progress for women, their continued low representation in trade and services points to deeper, systemic barriers for female entrepreneurs. The informal nature of many women-led businesses, often run from home without employees, limits their size, access to formal funding, and potential for growth, leaving them more exposed to economic downturns. Unlike businesses in the formal sector that have access to established supply chains and markets, these small enterprises often find it hard to gain visibility and secure capital. Government programs, though plentiful, frequently suffer from a lack of awareness. Studies show most women entrepreneurs don't know about available support. The difference in ownership between rural and urban women also suggests that local programs might not solve nationwide issues.
Pathways to Full Economic Potential
Current trends show growing but unequal participation of women in India's informal economy. Continued growth in manufacturing leadership is encouraging, but tackling deep-seated challenges in sectors like trade requires focused policy actions. Future efforts are expected to concentrate on improving digital skills, ensuring government schemes reach those who need them, and helping women-led micro-enterprises connect better with formal value chains. This will help them reach their full economic potential and contribute more to national GDP.