Empower women by educating them on finances: Vice-President

Hyderabad : Vice President of India M. Venkaiah Naidu has asserted that the nation could not accelerate its progress unless women were involved as equal stakeholders in every sphere of activity. He urged the governments at State and the Centre, NGOs and civic society at large to collectively work towards educating women on financial management.

Addressing the National Conclave on Women's Empowerment Through Financial Literacy organized by the Learning Links Foundation in association with the Vodafone India Foundation, in Hyderabad today, the Vice President called for greater thrust on empowering women through financial literacy. 'Making women equal partners in progress must begin by making them independent and empower them to deal with finances,' he added.

Naidu said that fastest growing economy like India which was projected by IMF to grow at 7.3 per cent this fiscal and 7.5 per cent in 2020 and is poised to become a US $ 5 trillion economy in next five years, must make women equal partners in that process by creating an enabling framework. 'We must realize that one cannot change social dynamics without women's involvement in the economy,' he added.

Stressing the need for improving women's understanding of financial rights, responsibilities and opportunities for income generation, the Vice President said that this was particularly important for a country like India which is witnessing a rapid economic and social transformation. He observed that educating women and girls about financial services, instilling the discipline of financial investment in them early would not only make them run households better, but would also help bring a turnaround in the fortunes of our country.

Pointing out that gender equality must be the concern of every citizen and not just women alone, Naidu said that empowering women through financial literacy would not only help in bridging the gender gap but would also ensure more secure future for women. At the same time, it was equally important to impart training and skills to women for economic empowerment.

Observing that financially literate women ensure greater financial stability through investments and savings, Naidu stressed the need to train rural women in the use of digital technology to promote and sell their products as also to ensure proper investment of their earnings.

The Vice President said that financial inclusion was one of the most effective accelerators of economic participation by women and called for efforts to generate or create programs and modules to increase financial literacy among women. He also complimented the Jaadu Ginni Ka campaign, a financial literacy initiative in India working in 15 states.

The Chairperson of Learning Links Foundation, Dr. Anjlee Prakash, the Managing Director of Mission for Elimination of Poverty in Municipal Areas, Government of Andhra Pradesh, P. Chinna Thataiah, the Director of Vodafone India Foundation, P. Balaji and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.