On the fringes of startup scene
KOCHI: Kerala may have one of the best ecosystems for startups in India, but when it comes to gender equality in the sector, the state falls behind.
According to ‘The State of Kerala Startup Ecosystem- 2019’ report, a gender breakdown of start-up founders has shown that only five per cent are females. Considering the vibrant startup scene in the state with a total of 2,200 startups, the figure fails to cut the mark. “Women in Kerala are educated and many of them have sound technical knowledge, hence the current numbers need to improve. Their participation in the field has increased through the years, but marginally,” said Dr Saji Gopinath, chief executive officer, Kerala StartUp Mission (KSUM).
Solid start
Many of the successful women-led startups are based in areas of IT (software), biotechnology and media. A total of 13 per cent of startups have at least one woman co-founder. Only about 14 per cent of startups have achieved gender parity among employees.
“Women entrepreneurs tend to come up with solid ideas, hence their rate of failure is low. In the initial years, they do make a profit, even while lagging in raising investments. To increase their awareness about funding opportunities, various workshops and events are regularly conducted. An encouraging trend noticed at the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Development Centre (IEDC) set up by KSUM in colleges is that an equal number of girls coming up with ideas for startups. But they fail to stick through and take up other jobs after college,” Saji added.
Nisary Mahesh, founder of Hubwords, content and digital marketing platform which was set up in 2009 when the startup culture was yet to pick up, shares her experience. “When I started, there was a lack of guidance. Work came in through references and word of mouth. As a woman in the digital space, people took me lightly. There have been situations where clients tried to bargain my rates. There is a presumption that women are flexible and will settle for less since they are not the sole breadwinners of the family.”
“A lot has changed since KSUM there is more guidance as well as a change in people’s mindset,”she adds.
Nisary now has a second enterprise, ‘Her Money Talks’, aimed at making women financially independent.
Many challenges
While there is yet to be a comprehensive survey of the success rates of women-led-startups, veterans say that it is the founder profile that matters. A supportive ecosystem plays a big role in success.
According to P M Riyaz, project director of KSUM, the major challenges faced by women are lack of access to capital and limited exposure to progressive work environments. “At KSUM, women are given preference in seed funds, extension on moratoriums and travel grants to encourage them. Celebrating their success too is important,” he added.
