Causes of low female labour force participation in India

This diploma thesis addresses the issue of low female labour force participation in the labour market in India. The thesis is divided into three chapters. In the first chapter, basic concepts associated with female labour force participation are introduced. It also presents the historical development of the FLFPR indicator in global and regional contexts alongside factors that may influence it. The second chapter is focused on forms of government support and well-known strategies aimed at increasing the share of economically active women in developing countries. The third chapter represents the practical part, a case study of the labour market in India. This country has been selected as an example of a nation with an extremely low FLFPR in the long term. The goal of this thesis is to identify the causes of low female labour force participation in India and to suggest priorities for solutions in the form of government actions on how to increase it. The findings of the thesis show that the causes of low participation vary to some extent depending on the location of residence. In general, the following causes were confirmed: informal employment, legal system barriers, sectoral employment and unequal remuneration, cultural norms, inadequate infrastructure and limited availability of childcare, and educational system-related problems. For each of the identified causes, possible solutions were proposed in line with the findings on the local labour market situation and the ongoing economic reforms.