SME Forum’s 6th annual conference

Current Context: The India SME Forum’s 6th annual conference, held on March 6, 2025, in New Delhi, revolved around the theme "MSMEs in Viksit Bharat: Fueling the Growth Engine."

• Aim: To discuss challenges and opportunities for MSMEs, focusing on women-led entrepreneurship, sustainability, and digital finance.
• Organized by: India SME Forum
• Chaired by: Vinod Kumar, President of India SME Forum

Highlights:

• Launch of ‘A Million Women Arise’ Initiative: A collaboration with NITI Aayog to empower women entrepreneurs through the Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP), offering support in finance, market access, skilling, mentorship, and networking.
• Focus on Women in MSMEs: Ankita Pandey noted that 35% of India’s 6 crore registered MSMEs are women-owned, spotlighting gender gaps and solutions.
• Policy and Ecosystem Support: Anna Roy emphasized creating a unified ecosystem for women-led businesses, aligning with national development goals.
• Leadership Insights: Vinod Kumar highlighted the transformative potential of supporting millions of women entrepreneurs and leveraging digital finance and global trade.
• Broader MSME Agenda: Discussions on sustainability, compliance, digital tools, and economic resilience to position MSMEs as India’s growth engine.

Question:

Q.1 Which organization partnered with the India SME Forum for the ‘A Million Women Arise’ initiative?
a) Ministry of MSME
b) NITI Aayog
c) Reserve Bank of India (RBI)
d) World Bank

Answer: b) The initiative was launched in collaboration with NITI Aayog’s Women Entrepreneurship Platform (WEP) to provide mentorship, financial aid, and market access to women entrepreneurs.