India’s G20 presidency underscores tectonic shift in perception about women’s contribution to nation and societies: Smriti Irani

Gandhinagar, Aug 1 (PTI) India’s G20 presidency has brought to the fore a “tectonic shift” in how women are to be perceived as ones who stand shoulder to shoulder with men as contributors to their countries and societies, Union minister Smriti Irani said on Tuesday

Addressing a gathering at the Mahatma Mandir convention centre here after inaugurating the G20 EMPOWER summit, Irani said what women today are ensuring is that their contribution to economies and social fabrics of nation-states is counted for and is on a par with men.

The four-day event will also have G20 Ministerial Conference on Women Empowerment between August 2-4.

“As a proud Indian today not only do I complement India’s presidency which has brought to the fore a tectonic shift in how women are to be perceived, that we are not those who seek the refuge of benevolence, that we stand shoulder to shoulder, head to head with men as contributors to our countries, to our societies,” she said.

The Union Minister for Women and Child Development, and Minority Affairs said Prime Minister Narendra Modi has thus brought “the women-led agenda to the main stage of India’s G20 presidency”.

“Since we know what it feels like being disenfranchised, since we know what it feels like to be stripped of the so-called privileges, we would not like them (men) to suffer the same,” she said.

Irani said it was Gujarat, the state hosting the event, was the first to witness how industry and self-help groups were brought together “so that women at the grassroots also had traction within the manufacturing part of the economy”.

When it comes to women entrepreneurs, the country has witnessed a “financial revolution”, with 70 per cent of beneficiaries of the 320 million loans disbursed in the SME (small and medium-sized enterprises) segment given by our financial institutions being women, she said.

Not only the SME segment but 80 per cent of the beneficiaries of middle-sized enterprises under the Centre’s Stand Up India’ scheme are also women, she added.

“However, what brings me great joy is that these unknown women, these untold stories thanks to the EMPOWER team led again under India have now found their voice in the empowered alliance,” she said.

She said the women’s agenda is not for the women alone but for the family and society, as research has found that women with increasing incomes invest twice as much as men do in family and local community.

“If in the labour market women find equal space as men, the contribution to global economies, especially to GDP would be something close to $20 trillion. Much has been said, much is left to do,” she said.

Gandhinagar is the host of the G20 EMPOWER Summit from August 1-4 and G20 Ministerial Conference on Women Empowerment from August 2-4 at Mahatma Mandir convention centre.

The themes for these events are women-led development: ensuring sustainable, inclusive, and equitable global economic growth, and women-led inclusive development as the cusp of inter-generational transformation’, respectively.

More than 600 participants from all over the world are expected to attend these meetings. They include several women ministers, high-profile speakers from India and abroad, G20 EMPOWER delegates and representatives from various global organisations.