World Bank plan to raise India women workers

New Delhi : At a time when nearly one million people are expected to enter the workforce every month for the next three decades, export-oriented apparel production in India and other South Asian countries has the potential to create more and better jobs, says a new World Bank report.
As wages increase, China, the largest apparel manufacturer for the last 10 years, is expected to slowly relinquish its lead position in the global apparel market, opening the door to other competitors. Even a 10 percent increase in Chinese apparel prices could create at least 1.2 million new jobs in the Indian apparel industry, the report estimates.

Women are expected to benefit the most as their share in the total apparel employment is much higher than their share in other industries.

A one percent increase in expected wages in the textiles and apparel industry could raise the probability of women entering the labor force by 18.9.

The report recommends removing trade restrictions to allow easy access to manmade fibers as inputs; increasing efficiency along the value chain such as integration between textile and apparel; and improving social and environmental compliance by introducing better human resource practices.