IFC Launches Flagship Gender Program to Boost Women's Employment in India

​Mumbai, India, February 29, 2024—To help recruit, retain, and promote more women across India's private sector, IFC today launched the India Gender Collaborative. The 12-month flagship gender program aims to catalyze economic participation of women in the country while fostering gender parity and inclusion.

IFC will spearhead the India Gender Collaborative by bringing together the World Bank, the International Labour Organization, and UN Women to highlight how integrating more women into business operations can increase companies' profitability and contribute to shared prosperity.

IFC's flagship program will equip businesses to close gender gaps while contributing to women's earnings, productivity, and growth. It will also train management teams across companies to create a supportive work environment, especially for employees with children and senior care responsibilities, increasing women's participation in the green economy and supporting India's net zero goals.

"In line with our mission to drive sustainable and inclusive private sector-led growth in developing countries, gender is a strategic priority for IFC," said Wendy Werner, India Country Head, IFC. "The goal of the India Gender Collaborative—a platform not restricted to only IFC clients and partners—is to spread the message and help more firms invest in women's employment. This will enable them to reach a wider talent pool, realize enhanced productivity, and improve staff retention, key to India's economic resilience."

Advancing women's equality in the Asia Pacific countries could add $4.5 trillion to their collective GDP annually in 2025. India alone has the potential to boost its GDP by 18 percent over business-as-usual growth—an additional $770 billion—by fostering gender equality at work.

"We sincerely believe that gender inclusion is critical to the growth of our company and we look forward to continued engagement with IFC and other firms through the India Gender Collaborative. We want to integrate inclusion into the ethos of our business," said Debasis Mohanty, Co-founder and CEO, TransVolt Mobility and an early partner to the India Gender Collaborative program.

IFC works to reduce gaps between men and women in the private sector, enabling companies and economies to improve their performance. Focus areas for IFC include boosting the number of women in leadership, expanding family-friendly policies such as childcare, and addressing gender-based violence. IFC also helps its clients measure and communicate the business case for investing in women's employment.  

Apply by April 5 to join the Collaborative. For more information, write to indiagendercollaborative@ifc.org.  

About IFC

IFC — a member of the World Bank Group — is the largest global development institution focused on the private sector in emerging markets. We work in more than 100 countries, using our capital, expertise, and influence to create markets and opportunities in developing countries. In fiscal year 2023, IFC committed a record $43.7 billion to private companies and financial institutions in developing countries, leveraging the power of the private sector to end extreme poverty and boost shared prosperity as economies grapple with the impacts of global compounding crises. For more information, visit www.ifc.org

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