Empowerment of tribal women through entrepreneurship evidences from jharkhand

Abstract

Entrepreneurship is a key driver for harnessing youth potential, generating newlineemployment, and advancing inclusive economic growth. The rising emphasis on female newlineentrepreneurship emerges as both an economic strategy and a pathway to Empowerment and newlinesocial change, particularly in developing regions. Tribal women entrepreneurs in Jharkhand, a state with a significant Scheduled Tribe population, engage in diverse entrepreneurial activities shaped by cultural context, geographic marginality, and structural constraints. Despite their critical role, their contributions remain largely invisible in mainstream policy newlineand academic discourse. However, Empowerment among tribal women is multidimensional, newlineencompassing economic gains, agency, decision-making, mobility, and social recognition, yet remains constrained by persistent challenges like limited access to markets, finance, training, and registration, exacerbated by geographic isolation and institutional neglect. Employing a mixed-methods design, this study integrates both quantitative and qualitative analyses, drawing from primary surveys and secondary data sources. Utilising the NSSO s 73rd Round on Unincorporated Non-Agricultural Enterprises, it investigates key operational and economic attributes of female-owned enterprises and their influence on enterprise performance, specifically measured through Gross Value Added (GVA). Complementing this, the primary survey focuses on tribal women entrepreneurs in Jharkhand, exploring their motivations for pursuing entrepreneurship, the extent to which entrepreneurial newlineengagement fosters Empowerment, and the multifaceted challenges encountered along their entrepreneurial trajectories. Using exploratory factor analysis, regression, and thematic analysis, the study offers a nuanced, intersectional understanding of female entrepreneurship among tribals in Jharkhand s socio-economic context.