Where Smart Investors See India’s Next Growth Wave

Archive edition · Market data and company circumstances reflect 14 June 2025, when this newsletter was sent.

India’s Womenomics Wave

If you had to bet on a single factor that could add an extra percentage point to India’s economic growth over the next decade, what would it be? Infrastructure? Artificial intelligence? Manufacturing exports?

What if the answer is right in front of us — in India’s untapped women workforce. A new proprietary research brings timely focus to India’s female labor force participation story — a theme that's often underappreciated, yet holds immense economic promise.

A Unique Demographic Window

The female LFPR in India remains lower than major economies.

India stands at a demographic sweet spot. Over the next two decades, the country will enjoy one of the lowest age-dependency ratios among major economies. In other words, fewer dependents for every working adult — a dream scenario for GDP growth.

By 2030, India’s working-age population is set to surge while other major economies grapple with aging societies. But here’s the catch — India’s female labor force participation rate (LFPR) is dramatically low, sitting at ~42% for 2023-24 per official Indian data, and ~31% per International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates. This is well below the ~79% male participation rate, and significantly behind other emerging and developed nations.

If India can boost overall labor participation back to its prior peak levels — driven largely by including more women — it could add 1 percentage point to potential GDP growth. That’s a big number in macroeconomic terms.

What’s Held Women Back

Women in India spend ~8x more time on domestic and care-giving services than men.

Here’s a list of several intertwined barriers:

• Disproportionate domestic responsibilities: Indian women spend ~8x more time on unpaid domestic and caregiving services than men — averaging 5 hours per day compared to just 37 minutes for men.
• Prevailing social norms: Deeply entrenched cultural expectations around marriage, childcare, and family obligations constrain occupational choices for women.
• Safety concerns: Reported incidents of crimes against women have tripled between 2003 and 2022, making workplace commutes and out-of-home jobs a security risk in many areas.
• Limited public transport: Only 37% of urban residents have easy access to public transportation, far below countries like Brazil and China.
• Few role models: Underrepresentation in leadership positions means fewer examples for younger women to emulate.

Progress Amid Challenges

Despite these hurdles, there’s evidence of movement in the right direction:

• Female labor participation is rising: The overall LFPR for women jumped from ~23% in 2017-18 to ~42% in 2023-24. Much of this growth is rural-driven, where LFPR nearly doubled from 25% to 48% over the same period.
• Self-employment on the rise: The share of self-employed women increased by ~11 percentage points to 31%. In rural India, this figure rose by ~16pp to 74%.
• Education is improving: The percentage of non-literate women dropped from 35% in 2017-18 to 30% in 2023-24. The share of women with higher secondary education and above climbed by ~5pp to 23%.
• Formal employment indicators up: Net female additions to India’s retirement fund (EPFO) have nearly doubled since 2018-19 — a sign more women are entering the formal workforce.

Consumer Goods & Financial Services

As more women enter the workforce, disposable incomes rise. Consumption baskets diversify — with higher spends on personal care, education, mobile connectivity, two-wheelers, and personal finance products.

• Hindustan Unilever – Dominant in personal care categories
• Marico, Dabur – Leaders in beauty & hygiene
• Bajaj Finance, HDFC Bank – Expanding retail finance and microcredit for women

IT & Digital Platforms

India’s IT sector employs 34% women — highest across sectors. Remote work and gig economy platforms will further open flexible employment channels.

• Infosys, TCS, Wipro – Already scaling returns and diversity hiring programs
• Zomato, Nykaa – Female-focused digital platforms seeing rising engagement

Start-Up Ecosystem

Another encouraging trend is the growing footprint of women in India’s thriving start-up ecosystem. As of 2024:

This matters because data shows women hire more women. Empowering female entrepreneurs has a multiplier effect on women’s employment.

• Women-owned ventures make up ~21% of total MSMEs
• ~70% of Informal Micro Enterprises (IMEs) are led by women
• 18% of start-ups and 17% of unicorns are women-led — up from 10% and 8% in 2017, respectively.
• 48% of recognized start-ups under the government’s Start-Up India Initiative have at least one woman director

Vocational Training & Skill Development

76% of women lack vocational training. Government push and digital delivery models present a scalable market.

Care Economy & Urban Infrastructure

Goldman Sachs projects a 2% of GDP investment in the care economy could create 11 million jobs — majority for women.

• Indian Hotels, Lemon Tree – as dual-income families increase discretionary travel
• IRCTC – safe, reliable transport gains demand
• Urban real estate investment trusts and affordable housing projects

Corporate India: Slowly Catching Up

Women representation in corporates gradually reduces from junior roles to executive roles.

Women remain underrepresented across corporate India:

The IT sector leads, with 34% women employees, thanks to India producing 43% STEM graduates as women — one of the highest globally. However, only 11% of IT executives are women, indicating a steep drop at higher levels.

Disclosure around gender diversity is improving — now, 95% of MSCI India companies report gender representation data. Yet reporting on metrics like the gender pay gap and new women hires remains weak.

• In MSCI India companies, women made up just 16% of the workforce in 2023.
• At the executive level, representation drops to 8%.
• Board-level representation is 18%, helped by regulatory mandates.

The Road Ahead: What Needs to Change

India’s demographic advantage won’t last forever. The next 20 years are a make-or-break window. Goldman Sachs outlines four critical areas for policy and business focus:

• Build a ‘Care Economy’: Invest ~2% of GDP in childcare and eldercare services, potentially creating 11 million new jobs, 43-74% of which would be for women.
• Transform Corporate Policies: Equal parental leave, career ‘returnship’ programs for women after career breaks, and more women in leadership pipelines.
• Leverage the Digital Economy: With India’s 1 billion+ internet users, digital platforms offer flexible, location-agnostic employment opportunities for women — provided gaps in digital literacy and social security coverage are addressed.
• Improve Public Transport: Expand safe, reliable, and affordable urban and rural transport systems to enable workforce participation.

Why Investors Should Pay Attention

India Womenomics is no longer a ‘nice-to-have’ social target — it’s a statistically proven, GDP-enhancing, consumer behavior-shaping investment theme.

Investors with a 5–10 year horizon should:

If India’s female LFPR rises to just 50%, it could add USD 700–900 billion to GDP by 2035.

It’s an investment story too large to ignore.

• Overweight sectors benefitting from rising female employment
• Track government policy pushes (care economy, transport, fintech inclusion)
• Prioritize companies disclosing gender diversity metrics

Archive note

This article preserves the analysis in our weekly newsletter sent 14 June 2025. Market prices, forecasts and company circumstances reflect the time of publication and may have changed.

This material is general information, not personal financial advice or a recommendation to trade. Investing and trading involve risk, including loss of capital.