The ratio of men and women in the total population of the country is the same. Nowadays, women are making their mark in various capacities of every sector, including jobs and entrepreneurship due to time-befitting and women-friendly policies taken by the relevant authorities.
Female labour force participation rate in Bangladesh has increased significantly over the past five years, especially in rural areas
Female participation in Bangladesh's labour force has increased to 42.68% in 2022, up from 36.3% five years ago, according to a survey report conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) released in March 2023.
Instead of being a salaried employee, more women are getting involved in entrepreneurship.
More women entrepreneurs are getting involved in economic activities of the country especially in the small scale of business and more or less they are playing a significant role to boost up the country’s economy.
The name of one such successful woman entrepreneur is Silvia Akter. Silvia with her fashion Brand "Ornate” has created a name in the fashion industry.
Silvia never thought about pursuing a career as a business woman, as she started her profession as a job holder after completing her studies. But, she did not find any interest in her job and felt bored working under a supervisor. Moreover, it became difficult for her to continue her job as she was blessed with a baby boy.
The total scenario changed as her father fell sick. She had to take charge of her father’s business venture. She started doing business with fashion brand “Ornate” which had four showrooms in the city’s Bashundhara Shopping Mall. Later, she opened outlets of Ornate in Jamuna Future Park, Gulshan and Chattogram.
Silvia was born in Munshiganj district and brought up in the city’s Elephant road. She studied at Willes Little Flower School, Shaheed Anwara Girls College and later completed graduation from American International University.
Currently, a total of 200 women are working in their showrooms, which is 60 percent of her total staff.
Although in the initial days, she had to struggle a lot, she has already established her shop as a good brand in the fashion industry.
Silvia said, “A person should be seen as an entrepreneur, rather than as woman entrepreneur, but in reality, women do not get the congenial atmosphere to do their business smoothly.”
“Compared to male entrepreneurs in the country, woman entrepreneurs have to face various obstacles in doing their business,” she added.
Her advice towards new women entrepreneurs is, “New women entrepreneurs should have the courage to deal with various problems while doing business and they should work positively to achieve their desired goal.”
“I want more women to become self-dependent like me. With patience, hard work and sincerity women can contribute in the development of the country,” she added.
Rokeya Sultana, who is working to establish women’s rights in the society, said it is a matter of joy that women are contributing in every sector of the society.
“Women in the developed countries do not face any discrimination, so they can contribute to their economic growth and achieve desired goals,” she added.
“Women in our country are making progress in every sector... the women-friendly policy of the government has tremendously contributed in this regard,” she said.
“Although still many women are deprived of their rational rights, these obstacles must be removed to help the country achieve its desired goals,” she added.
