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Urgent need to increase women’s participation in national economy: PM
Dr. Harini Amarasuriya
Prime Minister Dr. Harini Amarasuriya emphasised the urgent need to increase women’s participation in the economic sector, both globally and in Sri Lanka.
She pointed out there are stark gender disparities in labour force participation, with only 47 percent of women globally and 32 percent in Sri Lanka being economically active, compared to 72 percent and 71 percent of men.
“It is crucial to address the systemic barriers such as limited access to finance, markets, skilled labour and technology, which hinder the entrepreneurial endeavours of women,” said Dr. Amarasuriya at the launch of the Women’s Entrepreneurial Finance Code, this week.
Women in Sri Lanka also face numerous challenges, she added, due to the unsafe public transport and workplace environments as well as sociocultural norms that place significant domestic responsibilities on them.
According to the International Finance Corporation’s MSME Finance Gap Report, there is an estimated global finance gap of US $ 5.2 trillion for formal micro, small and medium enterprises (MSMEs) and US $ 2.9 trillion for informal MSMEs. Sri Lanka’s finance gap for MSMEs stands at approximately US $ 17 billion, accounting for 21 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. A significant contributing factor to this gap is the disproportionate impact on women-led MSMEs.
Closing the financing gap for women entrepreneurs could unlock an additional US $ 5-6 trillion in global economic value.
Dr. Amarasuriya also highlighted the Women Entrepreneurs’ Finance Goal (We Finance Goal), a global initiative aimed at enhancing access to finance for women entrepreneurs through leadership, action and data-driven approaches. She further emphasised that Sri Lanka is among the first 24 countries to pilot this initiative, with the Asian Development Bank (ADB) supporting its implementation and successfully formulating the National Definition for Women-led Businesses in August 2024.
Commending the ADB for its comprehensive support, Dr. Amarasuriya stated that the initiative has facilitated improved data collection and reporting, leading to better policymaking. She reaffirmed the government’s commitment to establishing a national coalition to support women-led micro, small and medium enterprises, strengthening women’s economic empowerment.
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