Publications
Publications
Category
Year
Newsletter (Gender In Focus)
Gender in Focus
- June , 2023
- IWWAGE
In this issue, we have included the insights from ‘Together We Can’, a compilation of case studies of how women’s collectives from different Indian states address the issue of gender-based violence that could serve as an example for others.
In this issue, we have included the insights from ‘Together We Can’, a compilation of case studies of how women’s collectives from different Indian states address the issue of gender-based violence that could serve as an example for others.
Learning note
Women’s Workforce Participation in India: Statewise Trends
- April , 2023
- Suchika Gupta , Sona Mitra , Bidisha Mondal
Uttar Pradesh, with a population of nearly 200 million, is India’s most populous state and the fourth largest by area. Despite a literacy rate of 57.1% for women in 2011 and a female unemployment rate of 13.1% in urban areas in 2020-21, UP remains an economic powerhouse. It is the largest producer of food grains and accounts for 90% of India’s carpet production. With a Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of INR 17.49 trillion in 2021-22, UP’s economy is driven by its thriving agricultural, textile, and tertiary sectors. This factsheet explores key socio-economic and employment trends in the state.
Uttar Pradesh, with a population of nearly 200 million, is India’s most populous state and the fourth largest by area. Despite a literacy rate of 57.1% for women in 2011 and a female unemployment rate of 13.1% in urban areas in 2020-21, UP remains an economic powerhouse. It is the largest producer of food grains and accounts for 90% of India’s carpet production. With a Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of INR 17.49 trillion in 2021-22, UP’s economy is driven by its thriving agricultural, textile, and tertiary sectors. This factsheet explores key socio-economic and employment trends in the state.
Learning note
Women’s Workforce Participation in India: Statewise Trends
- April , 2023
- Suchika Gupta , Sona Mitra , Bidisha Mondal
Assam, the second-largest state in the northeast by population and area, had a population of 3.12 crore in 2011. With a Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of INR 3,73,872 crores in 2020-21, the state’s Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP) rate stands at 18.9% in rural areas and 16% in urban areas, lower than the national average. Assam’s gender ratio in 2020-21 was 958 females per 1,000 males, and the literacy rate was 72.2%, with a gender disparity in literacy-77.85% for men and 66.27% for women. This factsheet examines Assam’s key socio-economic indicators.
Assam, the second-largest state in the northeast by population and area, had a population of 3.12 crore in 2011. With a Gross State Domestic Product (GSDP) of INR 3,73,872 crores in 2020-21, the state’s Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP) rate stands at 18.9% in rural areas and 16% in urban areas, lower than the national average. Assam’s gender ratio in 2020-21 was 958 females per 1,000 males, and the literacy rate was 72.2%, with a gender disparity in literacy-77.85% for men and 66.27% for women. This factsheet examines Assam’s key socio-economic indicators.
Factsheet
Women’s Workforce Participation in India: Statewise Trends
- April , 2023
- Suchika Gupta, Sona Mitra, Bidisha Mondal
This factsheet highlights Assam’s key socio-economic indicators, including a Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP) rate of 18.9% in rural areas and 16% in urban areas, both below the national average. With a literacy rate of 72.2%, the state shows notable gender disparity in education. Explore Assam’s economic landscape, gender ratios, and workforce trends.
This factsheet highlights Assam’s key socio-economic indicators, including a Female Labour Force Participation (FLFP) rate of 18.9% in rural areas and 16% in urban areas, both below the national average. With a literacy rate of 72.2%, the state shows notable gender disparity in education. Explore Assam’s economic landscape, gender ratios, and workforce trends.
Factsheet
Women’s Workforce Participation in India: Statewise Trends
- April , 2023
- Nidhi Gyan Pandey
West Bengal (WB) is located on the eastern coast of the Indian peninsula and is part of the fertile Indo-Gangetic Plain. It is the fourth most populous state in the country, with a population of about 99 million.This factsheet examines West Bengal’s key socio-economic indicators.
West Bengal (WB) is located on the eastern coast of the Indian peninsula and is part of the fertile Indo-Gangetic Plain. It is the fourth most populous state in the country, with a population of about 99 million.This factsheet examines West Bengal’s key socio-economic indicators.
Factsheet
Women’s Workforce Participation in India: Statewise Trends
- April , 2023
- Suchika Gupta, Sona Mitra
Uttar Pradesh, with a population of nearly 200 million, is India’s most populous state and the fourth largest by area.This factsheet explores key socio-economic and employment trends in the state
Uttar Pradesh, with a population of nearly 200 million, is India’s most populous state and the fourth largest by area.This factsheet explores key socio-economic and employment trends in the state
Brief
Hybrid Work and its Effect on Women’s Labour Force Participation
- April , 2023
- Areen Deshmukh, Mitali Nikore
COVID-19 and related lockdowns disrupted the global economy and reshaped the concept of the workplace. Organisations worldwide are increasingly adopting hybrid work models that combine remote and in-office work, a trend also evident in India, where 73% of firms plan to shift to hybrid work (CBRE). Women are more vulnerable to such economic shocks due to structural inequities and their disproportionate burden of unpaid care work, which intensified during the pandemic as care institutions shut down. As a result, women’s employment in India was severely affected, with 13.4 million women (26.6%) exiting the labour force between March–April 2020. Hybrid work offers potential to support women’s labour force participation by providing flexibility for those facing caregiving responsibilities, safety concerns, or mobility constraints. This policy review analyses existing government and private-sector hybrid work policies and identifies global best practices. The study draws on a literature review of policy and legal frameworks across 60 countries, along with consultations with key stakeholders.
COVID-19 and related lockdowns disrupted the global economy and reshaped the concept of the workplace. Organisations worldwide are increasingly adopting hybrid work models that combine remote and in-office work, a trend also evident in India, where 73% of firms plan to shift to hybrid work (CBRE). Women are more vulnerable to such economic shocks due to structural inequities and their disproportionate burden of unpaid care work, which intensified during the pandemic as care institutions shut down. As a result, women’s employment in India was severely affected, with 13.4 million women (26.6%) exiting the labour force between March–April 2020. Hybrid work offers potential to support women’s labour force participation by providing flexibility for those facing caregiving responsibilities, safety concerns, or mobility constraints. This policy review analyses existing government and private-sector hybrid work policies and identifies global best practices. The study draws on a literature review of policy and legal frameworks across 60 countries, along with consultations with key stakeholders.
Working Paper
Understanding the barriers to womens career advancement in manufacturing sector
- March , 2023
- Aishwarya Joshi , Kaavyayani Pal , Mahima Chaki
The COVID-19 pandemic catalysed a shift in how we work, bringing hybrid work models into the spotlight especially for women. These flexible arrangements offer greater autonomy over time, often leading to improved work-life balance, reduced costs, and higher productivity. However, the benefits and challenges of hybrid work are not experienced equally its effects are often gendered. While most existing research on hybrid work focuses on ICT-intensive sectors, there’s limited data on how women across different industries and regions are engaging with this model. With the government’s push for a digitally empowered society under the Digital India Programme, and a growing emphasis on enterprise development in peri-urban and rural areas, hybrid work holds promise for expanding economic opportunities for women. This rapid assessment captures insights from 400 working women, including 150 currently in hybrid roles, across sectors such as technology, social services, and healthcare. With an average respondent age of 27 years and nearly half residing outside metropolitan areas, the study highlights both the opportunities and gaps in hybrid work adoption. A case study from a rural BPO in Uttarakhand further explores how hybrid work could transform women’s employment in non-urban settings.
The COVID-19 pandemic catalysed a shift in how we work, bringing hybrid work models into the spotlight especially for women. These flexible arrangements offer greater autonomy over time, often leading to improved work-life balance, reduced costs, and higher productivity. However, the benefits and challenges of hybrid work are not experienced equally its effects are often gendered. While most existing research on hybrid work focuses on ICT-intensive sectors, there’s limited data on how women across different industries and regions are engaging with this model. With the government’s push for a digitally empowered society under the Digital India Programme, and a growing emphasis on enterprise development in peri-urban and rural areas, hybrid work holds promise for expanding economic opportunities for women. This rapid assessment captures insights from 400 working women, including 150 currently in hybrid roles, across sectors such as technology, social services, and healthcare. With an average respondent age of 27 years and nearly half residing outside metropolitan areas, the study highlights both the opportunities and gaps in hybrid work adoption. A case study from a rural BPO in Uttarakhand further explores how hybrid work could transform women’s employment in non-urban settings.
Brief
Emerging Priorities in the Care Sector: Opportunities for India’s G20 Presidency
- March , 2023
- Sona Mitra and Sruthi Kutty
Care work has emerged as a critical issue in shaping the women-led development agenda at the G20. This brief highlights priority concerns for India’s G20 presidency. Care work—both paid and unpaid—is essential to the functioning of economies and societies, yet it is disproportionately shouldered by women due to entrenched gender norms and the gendered division of labour. This unequal burden remains a major barrier to women’s participation in labour markets. Evidence shows that care responsibilities significantly limit women’s income-earning capacity and economic agency, with women globally spending two to ten times more time on unpaid care work than men.
Care work has emerged as a critical issue in shaping the women-led development agenda at the G20. This brief highlights priority concerns for India’s G20 presidency. Care work—both paid and unpaid—is essential to the functioning of economies and societies, yet it is disproportionately shouldered by women due to entrenched gender norms and the gendered division of labour. This unequal burden remains a major barrier to women’s participation in labour markets. Evidence shows that care responsibilities significantly limit women’s income-earning capacity and economic agency, with women globally spending two to ten times more time on unpaid care work than men.
Learning note
Gender Responsive Budgeting: Good Practices from Select States
- March , 2023
- Sona Mitra | Sruthi Kutty
Mainstreaming gender into development financing has gained global momentum, with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda reinforcing the need for gender-sensitive approaches in financial, economic, and social policies. In India, the journey towards Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) began with efforts in the Sixth Five Year Plan and was institutionalised at the central level in 2004-05. GRB aims to integrate gender considerations across development planning, programme formulation, and budgeting processes. India’s GRB mechanism functions through Gender Budget Cells and the Gender Budget Statement (GBS), covering 57 ministries as of 2022. While the framework provides an avenue for monitoring fund allocations and their impact on gender equality, significant gaps remain in its implementation. State governments, such as Odisha and Kerala, have shown greater success in embedding gender concerns into policy-making, with Odisha allocating over 40% of its budget towards gender priorities. However, at the national level, gender budgeting remains low, accounting for less than 5% of the Union Budget. This brief highlights the divrse approaches to GRB across states like Odisha, Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh, showcasing experiences, lessons learnt, and good practices in advancing gender equality through fiscal policy.
Mainstreaming gender into development financing has gained global momentum, with the Addis Ababa Action Agenda reinforcing the need for gender-sensitive approaches in financial, economic, and social policies. In India, the journey towards Gender Responsive Budgeting (GRB) began with efforts in the Sixth Five Year Plan and was institutionalised at the central level in 2004-05. GRB aims to integrate gender considerations across development planning, programme formulation, and budgeting processes. India’s GRB mechanism functions through Gender Budget Cells and the Gender Budget Statement (GBS), covering 57 ministries as of 2022. While the framework provides an avenue for monitoring fund allocations and their impact on gender equality, significant gaps remain in its implementation. State governments, such as Odisha and Kerala, have shown greater success in embedding gender concerns into policy-making, with Odisha allocating over 40% of its budget towards gender priorities. However, at the national level, gender budgeting remains low, accounting for less than 5% of the Union Budget. This brief highlights the divrse approaches to GRB across states like Odisha, Karnataka, Kerala, and Andhra Pradesh, showcasing experiences, lessons learnt, and good practices in advancing gender equality through fiscal policy.
Brief
Union Budget: 2026-27 What It Means for Women’s Economic Empowerment
- February , 2026
This brief examines the Union Budget 2026–27 in the context of the government’s renewed focus on Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE). The Economic Survey (2025–26) highlights persistent structural barriers that limit women’s entry, retention, and advancement in the labour market, including unpaid care responsibilities, skill gaps, limited infrastructure, and barriers to entrepreneurship. The Gender Budget, the government’s key fiscal tool for addressing these challenges, has increased from ₹3.9 lakh crore in 2025–26 (Revised Estimates) to ₹5 lakh crore in 2026–27 (Budget Estimates). The brief analyses how these allocations align with the policy priorities identified in the Economic Survey and assesses whether current spending effectively addresses the demand- and supply-side barriers shaping women’s economic participation.
This brief examines the Union Budget 2026–27 in the context of the government’s renewed focus on Women’s Economic Empowerment (WEE). The Economic Survey (2025–26) highlights persistent structural barriers that limit women’s entry, retention, and advancement in the labour market, including unpaid care responsibilities, skill gaps, limited infrastructure, and barriers to entrepreneurship. The Gender Budget, the government’s key fiscal tool for addressing these challenges, has increased from ₹3.9 lakh crore in 2025–26 (Revised Estimates) to ₹5 lakh crore in 2026–27 (Budget Estimates). The brief analyses how these allocations align with the policy priorities identified in the Economic Survey and assesses whether current spending effectively addresses the demand- and supply-side barriers shaping women’s economic participation.
Brief
Care and Climate Change
- January , 2026
The brief focuses on bridging feminist economics and climate policy, highlighting gendered care burdens, structural undervaluation of reproductive labour, and the need for transformative interventions like care-responsive adaptation and finance.
The brief focuses on bridging feminist economics and climate policy, highlighting gendered care burdens, structural undervaluation of reproductive labour, and the need for transformative interventions like care-responsive adaptation and finance.
Brief
Measuring Women’s Work: Innovations and Obstacles in the Global South
- January , 2026
The brief examined challenges and innovations in capturing women’s paid and unpaid work in labour statistics. Drawing on experiences from India, South Africa, Latin America, and global systems, panelists highlighted how survey design, classifications, and institutional limits determine what is counted, and what remains invisible
The brief examined challenges and innovations in capturing women’s paid and unpaid work in labour statistics. Drawing on experiences from India, South Africa, Latin America, and global systems, panelists highlighted how survey design, classifications, and institutional limits determine what is counted, and what remains invisible
Report Snapshot
The Changing World of Women’s Work
- December , 2025
- Bidisha Mondal, Prakriti Sharma, Aneek Chowdhury, Anjali S
This study examines women’s participation in India’s platform economy using a mixed-methods approach, combining a survey of 598 platform workers (440 women) across care, domestic, beauty, ride-sharing, and delivery services with qualitative interviews. While platform work offers new entry points and flexibility, it often mirrors and deepens the precarity of informal work, limiting its potential for women’s empowerment. Persistent challenges include income instability, high entry and platform costs, limited social protection, unsafe conditions, and reinforced gender inequalities. Meaningful progress requires coordinated action by policymakers, platforms, and worker collectives to ensure fair earnings, social security, gender-sensitive systems, and effective grievance redressal
This study examines women’s participation in India’s platform economy using a mixed-methods approach, combining a survey of 598 platform workers (440 women) across care, domestic, beauty, ride-sharing, and delivery services with qualitative interviews. While platform work offers new entry points and flexibility, it often mirrors and deepens the precarity of informal work, limiting its potential for women’s empowerment. Persistent challenges include income instability, high entry and platform costs, limited social protection, unsafe conditions, and reinforced gender inequalities. Meaningful progress requires coordinated action by policymakers, platforms, and worker collectives to ensure fair earnings, social security, gender-sensitive systems, and effective grievance redressal
Brief
Women’s Work and AI-Unlocking Potential, Bridging the Divide
- December , 2025
- Sharati Roy, Dr. Mahima Taneja
AI is not neutral in how it’s designed or deployed. It is reshaping labour markets, with the biggest gains when it complements human skills rather than replaces them (ILO, 2025). While AI can improve efficiency and decision-making in sectors like healthcare, finance, and education, it also risks job losses and deeper inequalities. Outcomes will depend on whether AI drives automation or augmentation. In India—where Digital Public Infrastructure, data expansion, and the gig economy are growing rapidly—this brief explores women’s opportunities in AI/data value-chain work and AI-augmented livelihoods to support economic empowerment.
AI is not neutral in how it’s designed or deployed. It is reshaping labour markets, with the biggest gains when it complements human skills rather than replaces them (ILO, 2025). While AI can improve efficiency and decision-making in sectors like healthcare, finance, and education, it also risks job losses and deeper inequalities. Outcomes will depend on whether AI drives automation or augmentation. In India—where Digital Public Infrastructure, data expansion, and the gig economy are growing rapidly—this brief explores women’s opportunities in AI/data value-chain work and AI-augmented livelihoods to support economic empowerment.
Report
The Changing World of Women’s Work
- December , 2025
- Bidisha Mondal, Prakriti Sharma, Aneek Chowdhury, Anjali S
This study examines women’s participation in India’s platform economy using a mixed-methods approach, combining a survey of 598 platform workers (440 women) across care, domestic, beauty, ride-sharing, and delivery services with qualitative interviews. While platform work offers new entry points and flexibility, it often mirrors and deepens the precarity of informal work, limiting its potential for women’s empowerment. Persistent challenges include income instability, high entry and platform costs, limited social protection, unsafe conditions, and reinforced gender inequalities. Meaningful progress requires coordinated action by policymakers, platforms, and worker collectives to ensure fair earnings, social security, gender-sensitive systems, and effective grievance redressal
This study examines women’s participation in India’s platform economy using a mixed-methods approach, combining a survey of 598 platform workers (440 women) across care, domestic, beauty, ride-sharing, and delivery services with qualitative interviews. While platform work offers new entry points and flexibility, it often mirrors and deepens the precarity of informal work, limiting its potential for women’s empowerment. Persistent challenges include income instability, high entry and platform costs, limited social protection, unsafe conditions, and reinforced gender inequalities. Meaningful progress requires coordinated action by policymakers, platforms, and worker collectives to ensure fair earnings, social security, gender-sensitive systems, and effective grievance redressal