Females are an essential
portion of the socio and economic progress of a country. Women are more than 50
percent of total people of Pakistan. They are playing a optimistic and
productive part in the development procedure in Pakistan. The success story of
agriculture is due to brilliant logistics delivered by women. Women are also
playing fruitful role in selected positions of industry as they are contributing
on premises of plants, factories and offices and some at home. In services
sector too, women are playing an significant role. However, we need to go a long
way to steadily enlarge the association of women in the development process of
Pakistan.
Women entrepreneurship is now considered an vital tool in allowing female
authorization and freedom. The benefits of female entrepreneurship are many and
varied. Furthermore, an economy succeeds when women get the same opportunities
as men. However, women entrepreneurs in Pakistan are facing many obstacles.
In Faisalabad it was pointed out that lack of finance, limitation on mobility,
limited decision making power, childcare load, family pressure and
discrimination were the as main barriers for women entrepreneurs. In Lahore, the
lack of finance, discrepancy in property rights, limited decision making,
communication gap with men, discrimination and harassment were identified as
major barriers for women entrepreneurs. In Sargodha, the major factors which
were perceived as barriers to women entrepreneurs were lack of finance,
restriction on mobility, limited decision making, lack of role models and
guiders, men’s hold on markets, family pressure and discrimination. The
respondents in Sialkot indicated lack of finance, poor knowledge about loan
process, limited decision making power, lack of education, childcare burden and
discrimination as major barriers in the way of women entrepreneurs.
I find that micro finance loans for businesses are largely unavailable to women
entrepreneurs, particularly unmarried women who are measured high-risk
borrowers. Micro finance providers enforce strict requirements that make it
difficult for businesswomen to secure loans without men. Nearly 68 percent of
women borrowers required a male relative’s permission in order to qualify for
any kind of loan.
I propose that by moving pragmatically to push the frontier of financial
outreach to women, Pakistan can demonstrate its position as a global leader in
micro finance. Investment in financial literacy and better-designed products,
which can give women entrepreneurs the resources they need to grow their
businesses, is one part of the solution. The report says that as a driver of
micro finance policy, the State Bank of Pakistan can also further spread micro
finance by setting standards for consumer protection of women borrowers,
advocating for transparency in gender reporting and discouraging discriminatory
practices and policies.