The Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) and TransUnion CIBIL have jointly launched SEHER, a credit education program designed to enhance financial literacy and business skills among women entrepreneurs. This initiative seeks to empower women by providing the financial tools and knowledge needed to foster business growth and create jobs.
SEHER is part of WEP’s Financing Women Collaborative (FWC), a pioneering public-private partnership incubated at NITI Aayog. The FWC aims to accelerate access to finance for women entrepreneurs while equipping them with the necessary expertise to build strong credit histories and effectively manage their finances.
TransUnion CIBIL data highlights a significant increase in demand for business loans among women, which has surged 3.9 times over the last five years (FY19–24). During this period, the number of women borrowers holding business loans grew by 10%, with women accounting for 38% of the 1.5 crore borrowers with active business loans as of March 2024. The portfolio balance for business loans held by women grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 35% from March 2019 to March 2024.
The SEHER program was officially launched today by Anna Roy, Mission Director of the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) and Principal Economic Adviser at NITI Aayog. The event was attended by prominent figures including Jitendra Asati, Director of Financial Inclusion at the Department of Financial Services (DFS), Ministry of Finance; Sunil Mehta, Chief Executive of the Indian Banks’ Association (IBA); Neeraj Nigam, Executive Director at the Reserve Bank of India (RBI); Mercy Epao, Joint Secretary at the Ministry of MSME; and Rajesh Kumar, Managing Director and CEO of TransUnion CIBIL.
“A lack of financial awareness is a major barrier to MSME development, a critical segment for our country’s economic growth,” said Anna Roy. She emphasized the importance of entrepreneurs understanding all aspects of finance, including their CIBIL Rank and commercial credit report, to access timely and better financing for business growth. WEP aims to bridge information gaps and provide support in finance, market linkages, training, mentoring, and business development services to empower women entrepreneurs.
According to the Udyam Registration Portal, India has 63 million micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs), with women owning 20.5% of these businesses, employing approximately 27 million people. Notably, rural areas have a slightly higher share of women-owned enterprises (22.24%) compared to urban areas (18.42%).
Accelerating women’s entrepreneurship, particularly in rural areas, could potentially create over 30 million new women-owned enterprises, generating 150 to 170 million jobs. Women-owned businesses already contribute 18.73% to the employment generated by URP-registered units, underscoring the critical role of women entrepreneurs in India’s economic landscape.
