Entrepreneurship: Creating employment opportunities and driving economic progress

India has a long history and diverse culture of entrepreneurship. We are one of the leading nations for innovative entrepreneurship among Asian countries, with entrepreneurship rates increasing to 14.9% between 2017-2018, as compared to 9% in 2015-2016. The idea of owning and running one’s own business is deeply rooted in our social, economic, and political culture.

With a majorly young population, entrepreneurship fits just as well. It generates employment, allowing the economy to move along by keeping the better part of a billion people employed.

Creating Jobs

Entrepreneurship spurs economic growth in several ways. The most obvious one is by generating employment opportunities. Entrepreneurs, at even the most basic scale, employ people, providing them with incomes that they can spend, initiating earn money programs, which fuels the movement of the economy. It is responsible for creating jobs with varying qualification requirements. For example, smaller entrepreneurs are more willing to hire employees with limited or no education, thus providing opportunities to people from all sections of society. Entrepreneurs also tend to hire locally, which reinforces the social fabric of their surrounding communities. 

Boosting A Country’s National Economics

Generating employment on a micro-level is key to national economics on a macro level. Employed people spend more, thus, giving a boost to the country’s gross domestic product. They also pay taxes, and by doing so, contribute to a country’s national income and are more likely to save and invest to make larger asset purchases in the future. People on a more stable financial footing are also more likely to send their children to school, setting off a chain of generational improvements in quality of life. As more and more people gain employment, the country’s middle class grows, setting it on the path of transitioning from a developing country to a developed one.

Driving Innovation

Entrepreneurship also drives innovation by expanding supply and increasing competition, thereby forcing entrepreneurs to develop and adopt novel practices that allow them to stay relevant and in business. Entrepreneurs are always looking to cut costs and stretch their resources, often developing business practices that can offer valuable competitive edges. They are also crucial for deploying technologies on large scales once they have been tried and tested by larger corporations. Several great ideas and innovations are a direct result of entrepreneurship. Large corporations might reject novel ideas due to the risk attached with implementing them, a risk that entrepreneurs are frequently more willing to take. Entrepreneurial ventures can also be more nimble and agile in the business environment.

Promoting Social Change

Entrepreneurship is also instrumental in promoting social change. Running a business gives direction to people, while the resultant employment they create allows other people to support themselves and their households, thus reducing petty crime related to unemployment. Employees in entrepreneurial ventures get access to mentorship from the entrepreneur and hands-on work experience, both of which empower them with skills they can use to further their ambitions in life. Small businesses are also vital to local communities—surveys have shown that the “ideal neighbourhood” is often described as one with a preponderance of independent businesses. 

Countries with good entrepreneurial infrastructure such as readily available finance, conducive governmental policies, and robust industrial infrastructure boast a better quality of life and prosperity. Entrepreneurship is not only a solution to unemployment, it can be a road map to a better life. 

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