Budget 2025 can be a blueprint for empowering women
This article is authored by Poonam Muttreja, executive director, Population Foundation of India (PFI), New Delhi.
As India gears up for Union Budget 2025, the nation faces a defining moment in its economic and social trajectory. Women, who make up nearly half of India’s population, remain severely underrepresented in the workforce, chronically underserved in critical areas like health care, education, and safety and sidelined when it comes to meaningful social investments. This systemic neglect is not just a moral failure but a glaring economic oversight, given that studies have repeatedly shown that empowering women can significantly boost national Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

The upcoming budget is more than just numbers on a page—it is a blueprint of India’s aspirations. It is an opportunity to prioritise gender equality, and allocate resources in ways that recognize women not as a vulnerable demographic but as a cornerstone of the nation’s progress.
India’s female labor force participation rate—at about 41%—remains below the global average. This is not merely a social issue but an economic challenge of monumental proportions. According to a 2015 Mckinsey Global Institute study, India could add $770 billion to its GDP within 10 years through closing its gender gap in labor force participation. Yet, systemic barriers, regressive social norms, and inadequate investment in gender-responsive infrastructure continue to exclude women from economic opportunities.
Economic empowerment of women is not just a matter of equity; but also good economics. Women are more likely than men to reinvest their earnings in their families and communities, multiplying the impact of their participation in the economy. Despite this, women face a double burden—limited skills as well as access to paid work and an unequal share of unpaid domestic labor. Indian women perform over 10 times more unpaid care work than men, which directly reduces their availability for formal employment.
Union Budget 2025 holds the potential to address these entrenched inequities by focusing on practical, high-impact solutions. Prioritising investments in infrastructure and services that reduce the burden of unpaid care work is imperative. This includes expanding affordable childcare facilities, providing safe and accessible transportation, and creating flexible work opportunities. Equally critical is the need for increased investments in social and behavior change communication initiatives, aimed at challenging and reshaping traditional gender norms. These measures are not merely welfare provisions; they are economic enablers that can unleash the full potential of India’s female workforce.
Women’s health and education remain severely underfunded, despite their proven impact on economic and social outcomes. Union Budget 2025 must allocate greater resources to women-specific health care initiatives, including reproductive health services, menstrual hygiene programs, and adolescent health interventions. Expanding schemes like Mission Shakti with a focus on comprehensive health care can help bridge these gaps.
One of the most pressing challenges is the unmet need for sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services. An estimated 24 million women and girls in India have an unmet need for contraception, reflecting gaps in access to family planning and reproductive health services. Addressing these gaps can significantly reduce unintended pregnancies, maternal mortality, and unsafe abortions, which continue to claim thousands of lives annually. Moreover, ensuring access to comprehensive SRH services—including contraceptive choices, safe abortion care, and adolescent health programmes—empowers women to make informed decisions about their bodies and futures. This, in turn, enables them to pursue education, join the workforce, and contribute meaningfully to the economy.
Education is another critical area where focused investment can yield transformative change. While programmes promoting girls’ education have made progress, dropout rates remain high, particularly in rural areas. Safety concerns, inadequate school infrastructure, and societal pressures like early marriage compound the problem. Targeted investments to create safe and inclusive school environments, improve infrastructure, and provide financial incentives for higher education can break this cycle. Such measures are not only an investment in the future of young girls but also in the nation’s human capital and long-term development.
Several structural and cultural barriers prevent Indian women from entering and staying in the workforce. Gender inequality in employment is a multifaceted challenge, encompassing both supply-side issues and demand-side challenges. Even as women are increasingly educated, the availability of jobs that accommodate their needs and aspirations remains limited.
The government must play an active role in creating these opportunities. Public works programmes like Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) should be expanded with a focus on creating women-friendly employment conditions, such as work sites with childcare facilities. Similarly, incentivising private sector employers to recruit and retain women through subsidies or tax breaks could help balance the scales.
Moreover, investing in skill development programmes tailored to the needs of women, particularly in emerging industries like technology and renewable energy, can prepare them for jobs of the future. Closing the gender gap in traditionally male-dominated sectors will not only empower women but also drive innovation and productivity.
Social barriers like child marriage and gender-based violence continue to restrict women’s agency and potential. Despite legal protections, nearly one in four girls in India is married before the age of 18, robbing them of their education and exposing them to health risks and domestic abuse. Such practices perpetuate cycles of poverty and inequality, undermining both individual and national progress.
Union Budget 2025 must allocate resources for better implementation and enforcement of laws such as the Prohibition of Child Marriage Act and the Domestic Violence Act. However, laws alone are not enough. Community-based awareness campaigns, social and behavioural change communication initiatives, coupled with investments in education and economic opportunities for girls, are critical to dismantling the societal norms that perpetuate these practices.
A critical, often overlooked, element in combating these barriers is male engagement. Gender equality is not solely a women’s issue; it requires active participation from men. Male engagement, is essential for advancing gender equality and addressing issues like reproductive health, unpaid care work, and violence against women. Programmes that involve men as allies—whether through community awareness, shared household responsibilities, or reproductive decision-making—help challenge entrenched gender norms and create a more supportive environment for women and girls.
India can draw inspiration from global examples of gender-responsive budgeting. In Rwanda, gender considerations are embedded across government ministries, leading to increased female workforce participation and better healthcare and education outcomes. Sweden, through its comprehensive gender-responsive budgeting framework, has consistently ranked as one of the most gender-equal nations in the world.
These examples demonstrate that transformative change is possible when gender equity is prioritised at every level of governance. For India, this means institutionalizing gender-responsive budgeting as a central pillar of fiscal policy. It also means engaging women’s voices in policymaking, particularly from marginalised communities, to ensure that resources reach those who need them most.
Union Budget 2025 must go beyond symbolic gestures to create a roadmap for empowering women and girls. This includes targeted investments in health care, education, and economic empowerment, as well as addressing systemic barriers like unpaid care work and workplace discrimination. These interventions should be viewed not as expenses but as high-yield investments in India’s future, with the potential to drive sustained economic growth and societal progress. Moreover, achieving meaningful progress requires a commitment to accountability. Gender-specific goals and outcomes must be embedded within budget frameworks, accompanied by transparent monitoring and evaluation mechanisms.
The urgency for action cannot be overstated. India cannot achieve its aspirations of becoming a $5 trillion economy without fully harnessing the potential of its women. Budget 2025 is an opportunity to set a precedent and demonstrate that gender equity is not an afterthought but a cornerstone of India’s development. By prioritising women and girls in this year’s budget, the government can take a bold step toward creating a more inclusive, prosperous, and equitable India for all.
This article is authored by Poonam Muttreja, executive director, Population Foundation of India (PFI), New Delhi.
