The government is trying to increase the participation of women in the workforce from 24% to 50% through effective implementation of labour schemes, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
He was speaking after inaugurating the seventh National SARAS Mela organised by the Kudumbashree in the State at the Kanakakkunnu Palace grounds on Wednesday.
The Chief Minister said the government was trying to provide employment to 40 lakh people in the State in the next five years. Of these, 20 lakh opportunities would be in novel sectors. The biggest beneficiaries of these novel opportunities would be women.
Lack of financial independence was one of the reasons for violence and atrocities against women. The government intended to overcome these through activities with the message of Streepaksha Navakeralam. Besides ensuring legal and social security, women had to be taken towards financial independence. Only then could gender quality be realised. It was with this aim that the government was trying to increase women’s participation in the workforce and find more sources of income for them.
Gender budgeting was being done to provide financial support for women empowerment, Mr. Vijayan said. The gender budget outlay this year had been increased to ₹4,665 crore. This was 20.9% of the total Plan fund of the State. Steps to strengthen Kudumbashree had been included in the budget. The Kudumbashree had been allocated ₹260 crore. The Kudumbashree units could be seen as nodal agencies of local economic development. It was expected to provide employment to two lakh people through various schemes.
A sustainable sales network will be set up to find a market for Kudumbashree products. The Streepaksha Navakeralam programme will be expanded by including neighbourhood group members, auxiliary group members, and members of the public. A loan of ₹500 crore will be made available at low interest rates for local economic development and poverty eradication.
An amount of ₹18 crore had been earmarked for providing interest subsidy. Along with major schemes, micro-level schemes targeted at uplift of every citizen were being formulated by the government, he said.
In the post-COVID times, even as balanced distribution of resources and moderate consumption were being looked at more seriously the world over, there was also the view that local collectives and enterprises should remain vibrant. The government policy was to promote small enterprises and self-help groups along with big enterprises in these times. The SARAS Mela was an example of this.
The fair provided a platform for sale of products from rural entrepreneurs and traditional handicrafts of the country. Hurdles in finding a steady market had to be eliminated to help rural enterprises and entrepreneurs, Mr. Vijayan said.
Women entrepreneurs in local attire from 13 States, including from Kerala, presented their own dishes in a single thali to the Chief Minister.
Minister for Local Self-government M.V. Govindan who presided over the function said the fairs helped link diverse cultures and foods in the country, and should be seen as a project for creating cultural awareness.
