Exploring the Impact of Education on Women's Employment and Entrepreneurship Opportunities

Arisha Qureshi,

Institute of Law, Jiwaji University

Abstract

One of the main determinants constituting an entrepreneurial woman is education. Parallelly, education also aids women in realising potential and increasing awareness of their intrinsic entrepreneurial traits. In the expanding world of today, it is essentially crucial for the businesses and individuals to be caution as well as aware. It is believed that entrepreneurship is the most successful strategy for a growing an economy. The paper sheds light on the interrelated relationship between education, empowerment and entrepreneurship. This study examined the viability of socially conscious female entrepreneurs. The importance of education for women business owners, as well as the impact that their educational background and entrepreneurial pursuits have on their growth.

Keywords: Women entrepreneurship, Education, Empowerment, Economic stability

Introduction

Being an entrepreneur is the act of undertaking innovations, financing, and business skills translate innovations into commercially viable commodities. Small business owners starting up on Main Street are examples of entrepreneurs.[1] Apparently, entrepreneurship embraces these and numerous more entrepreneurial endeavours that drive to turn an idea into a successful enterprise.

Education on entrepreneurship can be defined as an educator's intentional involvement in a student's life with the goal of instilling in them the values and skills necessary to be successful in the business world. To this end, we might define entrepreneurship education as the systematic teaching of students to think, act, and behave like entrepreneurs. Education plays a crucial part in entrepreneurship by imparting a vast array of skills vital for spotting business opportunities, establishing a company, and making sound decisions as well.

Women Empowerment refers to the formation of an atmosphere wherein women make decisions for their own good and the benefit of the society at large. The elimination of gender inequality, which is often defined as "the absence of evident or concealed discrepancies among individuals based on gender in terms of opportunities, resources, services, rewards, decision-making power and influence," is often achieved by empowering women.

Additionally, gender equality withholds economic stability as well as is a moral obligation concerned with fairness and equity.

Furthermore, it entails numerous political, social, and cultural components. [2] In addition, gender equality "is a crucial element in self-reported well-being and happiness around the world"

Entrepreneurship among women has been recognised as a significant driver of economic expansion. In addition to creating new jobs for themselves and others, female entrepreneurs offer society with a variety of management, organisation, and commercial solutions. Yet, they remain a minority amongst entrepreneurs.

Women Entrepreneurs oftentimes face gender-based obstacles when launching and expanding their businesses, such as discriminatory property, matrimonial, and inheritance laws and/or cultural practises; lack of access to formal finance mechanisms; limited mobility and access to information and networks; etc.

The majority of countries have prioritised women's entrepreneurship growth as part of their overall human resource development. Policymakers across the globe have widely acknowledged that the strategic growth of an economy necessitates equal participation and opportunities for all religions and sexes. For a sustainable socio-economic development entrepreneurship growth is indispensable.[3] While being underrecognized, the fact that many small and medium-sized businesses are successfully run by women lends a specific relevance to the advancement of women.

Education viz-a-viz Empowerment

No access to education women implies no access to information. Thus, reflects lesser engagement of women in public debates, and apparently being left unaware of their rights. Education is the most powerful weapon for changing women's social status. Our country's women are, backward, illiterate, weak, & exploited on a larger scale. The role of education ranges from eradicating inequities to improving their standing within the family. Women benefit from empowerment and capacity building by having access to in-hand experience & learning for their own good.

Women contribution to the nation is as per their capacity & ability is an indispensable parameter of making India a developed nation and is only feasible if they are empowered & educated. Reading and education can be the sole medium to assist women in understanding the legislative framework and constitutional mechanism designed in their support. Education facilitates women's mobility by giving more authentic exposure to learning by seeing. By incorporating them into successful enterprises, empowerment empowers the ability to women to influence planning, decision-making processes, evaluation, & lastly implementation.

Empowerment of Women through Entrepreneurship

The United Nations stated in the early 1980s that women performed two-thirds of the world's labour, earned one-tenth of the world's revenue, and held one-hundredth of the world's economic resources (Lavoice, 2000). Entrepreneurship or self-employment is a tool for empowering women. Why do women choose entrepreneurship or self-employment?

As per a survey, autonomy is regarded as one of the best ways to achieve personal freedom. This level of autonomy gives people the chance to:

(1) be in charge of their own decisions, which implies having the freedom to choose, which forms the cornerstone of empowerment.

(2) be in charge of doing preferable work, which suggests having access to stronger networks, which directly results in empowerment.

(3) Achieve financial freedom: - Financial independence is a significant determinant of women's empowerment.

The effects of ED on empowerment are as follows.[4]

1. Women's Self-Confidence

The women's future was brightened by increased self-confidence brought on by the development of their businesses.

2. Financial Stability

The most significant changes are brought about by a rise in income, which not only improves a person's life but also raises her level of living, bringing about financial stability for the family. Her income growth also benefits the family as a whole, giving everyone access to a better standard of living, including improved access to education for the kids and better family health.

3. Capital Structure

Women are able to grow their businesses, buy new equipment, tools, accessories, and other items thanks to their (women's) economic success. Modernizing the workplace, introducing new technology to boost output, hiring more people, and increasing their purchasing power improve their social and economic standing.

4. The Status Role

According to reports, the contribution of women to family income has altered some aspects of decision-making in the home. Nowadays, the majority of men counsel their spouses on significant family issues. Having money has given them more influence over decisions. Women still have authority over their income, therefore they are able to lend both small and large sums of money to businesses and other people without their husbands' consent. Women believe that having a voice in the business has indirectly boosted their bargaining power within the family. Female participation in the household and in society has gradually evolved.

Challenges and Constraints

Entrepreneurial women have encountered financial, patriarchal family, marketing, health, & education limitations. Lack of technological know-how, education, & cultural variations, combined with severe company rules contributes to the most significant obstacles preventing women from attaining leadership positions and capitalising on entrepreneurial prospects.

Several pedagogical restrictions in India are also apparent –

·       The supply-demand divide

·       Limited access to entrepreneurial opportunities.

·       Old, restrictive curricula.

·       Lack of employer interaction in course content and skill development.

·       Restrictions on the capacity for and innovation in research

·       Less opportunities for transdisciplinary learning

In India Women’s active participation is primarily seen in MSME since they establish their ventures with little budgets & minimise risk. Thus, women's engagement in entrepreneurial activities relative lower in revenue. (The MSME, Annual report 2012–13) Women are now cognizant of their constitutional rights and employment status. Yet, women are hesitant to modify their roles for fear of societal repercussions. There is a clear connection between literacy and women empowerment.

Initiatives by the Government

Governments must intervene to promote empowerment. Interventions for women require well-planned approaches. Women entrepreneurship is frequently fuelled by a combination of necessity and motivation; good enabling conditions are crucial to that effect. The policies laid down by the Indian government aimed at providing equal opportunities for women.

In 2009, the government unveiled the National Skill Development Mission & the National Skill Development Policy with an aim of vocational education, skill training, & entrepreneurship orientation. By reducing the barriers for women to access finance, markets, and training, the company expects to advance them to the top of India's entrepreneurial ecosystem. The Government has launched programmes such as Startup India, Atal Innovation Mission, Make in India, Support to Training and Employment Programme for Women (STEP) Trade-related Entrepreneurship Assistance and Development (TREAD), Stand-Up India, & programmes on the similar lines for promotion women entrepreneurship by way of fostering, mentoring, & facilitating training in a varied forms.

Shaping women entrepreneurships with adequate entrepreneurial traits and talents is a sheer need to adapt to global market shift and hardships so as to survive as well excel in the entrepreneurial realm.[5]

Findings

Illiteracy amongst women causes them to rely on men and assume a subservient position. The democratic setup has enabled us to enact laws, devise policies, plans, and programmes that aim to empower women in numerous parlance. Women with education can contribute to nation building. Presently, only few women hold prominent positions in India and the rest of the world, but education promotes active participation by women in economic affairs. Although, while economic stability is crucial, education remains the key component of empowerment and lends more support. So, to encourage women to engage in different types of entrepreneurial activities, efforts must be made.

Conclusion:

The paper addresses various gender equality issues, such as women education, & empowerment. Entrepreneurship. It briefly includes discussion along with literature review of the given significant facets of economic empowerment.

Also, the paper incorporates a feminist viewpoint on how women see the issue of discrimination and the truth of women's subordination in the marketplace.

Education is a fundamental human right that facilitates women empowerment as well as social and human growth. Education liberates people from the shackles of ignorance and protects them from being exploited and marginalised. Thus, increasing women's education is crucial to empower them to achieve goals on par with men in a variety of fields.

The expansion of opportunities for women’s economic empowerment is a result of the policy framework offering vocational education & training to gain entrepreneurial skills.

There exists an innate relation between women education, empowerment and entrepreneurship.  Consequently, essential and adequate policy attention, action, and efforts are needed to accomplish the goals of women empowerment and societal development at large.

Suggestion:

It can be claimed that women's engagement in the sphere of entrepreneurship is expanding at a rapid rate nowadays, putting us in a better position. The government's various programmes and plans to assist women entrepreneurs should be vigorously implemented at multiple levels. A low-interest loan can be used to encourage women to participate in this business venture. One way would be that the government, banks, financial institutions, & affluent individuals offer vulnerable women with interest-free financing for consumption. There should be a forum where entrepreneurs running this business for various reasons can share their experiences. This will assist them in maintaining their expertise.

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[1] Agarwal V.K, ―Initiative, Enterprise and Economic Choices in India‖, Munshiram Manoharial, New Delhi, 1975, p.82

[2] Adams, J. (2005). The Rule of the Father. In C. Comic, P. S. Gorski, & D. M. Trubek (Eds.), Max Weber's Economy and Society: A Critical Companion (pp. 237- 266). Stanford: Stanford University press

[3] Nandapurkar. G.G, ―Small Farmers – A Study on their Entrepreneurial Behaviour‖, Metropolitan Book Company Pvt. Ltd., New Delhi, 1982, p.33.

[4] amble, H.Y., ―A Study of The Socio-Economic Background of Women Entrepreneurs of Belgaum Taluk‖, The Indian Journal of Commerce, December, 1997, Vol. L, No. 193, Part IV, pp. 229-242

[5] Sharma R.A., ―Entrepreneurial Change in Indian Industry‖ Sterling Publishers Pvt., Ltd., New Delhi, 1980 p.29.