For women empowerment, female participation in MSMEs must increase: Godinho

Panaji: Of the 66,000 MSMEs registered in Goa, only 1,600 are led by women entrepreneurs, said industries minister, Mauvin Godinho, on Friday. He said the number of women in the MSME sector needs to be increased, which will, in turn, boost women empowerment efforts in the state.
Women can help drive the rural economy efficiently besides gaining financial security in society, Godinho said. He was speaking at the launch of the Raising and Accelerating MSME Performance (RAMP) programme organised by the directorate of industries, trade, and commerce.
“If we want to achieve growth in our economy and generate employment, serious efforts towards strengthening MSMEs need to be made, wherein the launch of the RAMP initiative will play a significant role in boosting MSMEs,” the minister said.
He mentioned that Goa is known for products that can be promoted on a large scale, and processed and marketed at the national and international levels. He asked all departments to focus on providing support and assistance to rural entrepreneurs working in the MSME sector. He also directed all agencies and departments to achieve the targets set under RAMP in Goa.
Centre has launched the World Bank-supported RAMP scheme, which aims to enhance the performance of MSMEs across the country.
Director at the MSME ministry, Vinamra Mishra, urged MSMEs to pursue ‘Z’ certification, which will attract various benefits of schemes implemented by govt.