Government e-Marketplace (GeM), Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Government of India, and the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to enhance the empowerment and integration of women entrepreneurs from the informal sector into the country’s public procurement ecosystem.

The MoU focuses on promoting gender-responsive procurement by encouraging increased sourcing from women-led businesses, thereby expanding market access for women entrepreneurs under GeM’s Womaniya initiative.

The MoU was signed by Country Representative, UN Women India, Smt. Kanta Singh, and Additional CEO, GeM, Shri Ajit B. Chavan. CEO, GeM, Shri Mihir Kumar presided over the ceremony. In his presidential remarks, he said that the partnership reinforces GeM’s commitment to empowering women entrepreneurs by expanding their access to public procurement and creating forward market linkages through GeM.

GeM, the national public procurement portal for Central and State Government Ministries, Departments, PSUs and autonomous bodies, continues to promote transparent, efficient and inclusive procurement. Through GeM, women entrepreneurs and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) can directly supply their products to government buyers. To support seamless onboarding and procurement, GeM has created generic product categories covering handicrafts, handloom items, jute and coir goods, bamboo products, organic foods, spices, accessories, home décor and office furnishings.

Under the collaboration, UN Women will design training materials, recommend global best practices, share success stories and assist in developing validation criteria for women-led businesses. UN Women will also promote the Womaniya – #VocalForLocal Outlet Store, support onboarding of UN programme participants, encourage MSME Udyam Registration, mobilise women trainers and connect women entrepreneurs with advisers and relevant institutions.

GeM will conduct training programmes, sensitise government buyers and highlight the achievements of women entrepreneurs. GeM will also organise onboarding workshops, develop vernacular training materials and build partnerships for entrepreneurship and decent work opportunities. Additionally, GeM will engage women trainers and align women entrepreneurs with Government Labs and R&D institutes to support product development, improvement and market readiness.

Together, GeM and UN Women will work toward promoting gender-responsive procurement, strengthening hyper-local market linkages and contributing to the achievement of Sustainable Development Goal 5 – Gender Equality and Empowerment of All Women and Girls.

The MoU was signed in the presence of officials including United Nations Resident Coordinator’s Office (UNRCO), India, Smt. Radhika Kaul Batra, senior officers from both organisations, and representatives of trade associations such as Laghu Udyog Bharti, PHDCCI, and SEWA Bharat. The signing ceremony was held at the GeM office, Jeevan Bharti Building, New Delhi.

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Abhishek Dayal/ Nihi Sharma/ Ishita Biswas

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