India Reaffirms Women-Led Development at SCO Women's Forum 2026

By: Women Entrepreneurs Review Team | Saturday, 27 June 2026

India restated its commitment towards promoting women-led development and enhancing regional cooperation for women's empowerment at the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) Women's Forum 2026 held in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic.

Through a video message, Union Minister for Women and Child Development Annapurna Devi conveyed her speech at the forum and restated India's commitment to the principles of the SCO such as mutual respect, equality and consensus. At the same time, she referred to India's determination to be a part of the organisation's collective development goals.

While India delivered its inaugural speech and during a panel discussion on "Role of Women in Economic Development, " the minister emphasized that women are not just receivers of economic advancement but are actually one of the strongest forces behind it. She referred to the Narendra Modi administration's concept of Women-Led Development and declared that it continues to be at the core of India's aspiration of achieving a Viksit Bharat (Developed India) status by 2047 via inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

Key Highlights:

• India renewed its pledge to promote women empowerment in development through the SCO Women’s Forum 2026 held in Bishkek, Kyrgyz Republic
• Over 100 million women are members of more than 9 million SHGs, out of which more than 30 million are referred to as “Lakhpati Didis”
• India shared its experience with other member countries of the SCO in order to enhance women economic empowerment

Minister celebrared and highlighted the success of the women empowerment initiatives in India like bringing together nearly 100 million women under more than 9 million Self-Help Groups (SHGs), spread across the country. According to her, at least 30 million women have attained millionaire status (Lakhpati Didis) which is a testimony to the success of the measures targeting financial empowerment and entrepreneurship of rural women.

In addition to this, she pointed out the government flagship programmes that are Mission Shakti and Mission Poshan 2.0. She referred to them as foundational elements for enhancing women's safety, their nutritional health, care, and increased economic participation.

Highlighting the importance of regional cooperation, India stated its readiness to share its experiences and best practices for women's economic leadership with other SCO member countries. The minister highlighted that enhanced cooperation among the SCO countries could lead to greater opportunities for women, foster inclusive development and help achieve sustainable growth in the region.

The SCO Women's Forum acts as a significant avenue for member countries to share their perspectives, work together on gender equality and bolster cooperation in the development and social empowerment of women policies. India's attendance in the forum this year is a sign of its ongoing commitment to keeping women at the heart of development and at the same time building partnerships under the SCO mechanism.