Work4Progress India Meet Urges Support for Women Entrepreneurs

By: WE staff | Friday, 7 November 2025

• The yearly meeting of Work4Progress India took place in New Delhi
• The event centered around the topic of women entrepreneurs and creating livelihoods
• The speakers shared ways that women and youth could develop pathways to sustainable livelihoods

The Work4Progress India initiative implemented by Spanish La Caixa Foundation announced its annual conference in New Delhi on women's entrepreneurship and sustainable livelihoods.  

In addition, to highlight women's and youth empowerment as a method of building an inclusive and resilient enterprise ecosystem.

The conference gathered policymakers, social entrepreneurs, development organisations, and change leaders, with the overall theme of "Resilient Enterprise Ecosystem: Women and Youth-led Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Inclusion" to contribute toward building stronger livelihoods for women across the country through innovation and inclusivity.

Since its inception in 2017, Work4Progress India has focused on creating sustainable employment models for women and youth across various states, with a dense focus on Eastern Uttar Pradesh.

The Work4Progress program aims to incubate grassroots innovation, entrepreneurship, and financial independence through a focus on women in leading positions in designing their futures.

Unlike traditional employment schemes, which often require a cyclical workforce, this initiative focuses on long-term system change through collaboration.

The designing phase will identify local needs and co-design solutions, and seeks to explore new financial tools and communication tools to advance collective impact.

During the conference, experts reflected upon the progress of the programme and its contribution towards the development of rural enterprise.

Some of the speakers at this conference were Suhela Khan, Country Manager for UN Women's Economic Empowerment Programme; Ved Arya, Founder-Director of the Buddha Institute; and Benjamin Mathew, CEO of Citta India Foundation.

Discussions revolved around how women and youth can drive innovation and resilience in the ecosystem of Indian enterprises.

Suhela said that, while women's participation in the labour market has risen, particularly in rural areas, only about 10-12 percent is formally employed. According to her, access to economic opportunities has become easier, but is still not easy:

Panellists also discussed the need to promote green livelihoods and ensure that environmentally sustainable enterprises are viable.They stressed that gender inclusion should not be an afterthought but rather be intentionally woven into programme design.

The discussion went on to note that meaningful progress requires addressing systemic inequalities and changing patriarchal norms, which constrain female economic participation.