India, April 10 -- The Government of India has issued a release:

Key Takeaways

Introduction: Womaniya-Opening the Door for Every Woman

What is GeM?

Womaniya Initiative: A Dedicated Platform for Women Entrepreneur

��Did you know?

What is SWAYATT?

Product Categories Under Womaniya

Key Features of the Womaniya Initiative

Digital Onboarding of Women Entrepreneurs and SHGs

Transparent and Fully Digital Procurement Processes

Time Bound Acceptance and Payment Mechanisms

Training, Outreach and Support Services

From Participation to Prosperity: The Womaniya Impact

Conclusion: A Marketplace that Represents the Better Half of Society

Government e Marketplace (GeM) is an online platform that facilitates end-to-end procurement of goods and services by various Central/State Ministries, departments, organizations, public sector undertakings, Panchayats and Cooperatives. GeM, launched in 2016 under the vision of "Minimum Government, Maximum Governance," is a paperless, cashless and contactless platform enabling Government buyers to directly procure goods and services from pan-India sellers online.

SHGs are a grassroots informal organisations aiming at empowering rural women. SHGs normally include 10 to 20 members who pool their resources, work together to save money and provide a helping hand to one another and engage in income generating activities.

SWAYATT (Startups, Women & Youth Advantage Through e-Transactions) is an initiative of the Government e-Marketplace launched in February 2019 to promote inclusive participation in public procurement. The initiative focuses on enabling startups, women entrepreneurs, youth, Micro & Small Enterprises (MSEs), Self-Help Groups (SHGs), and marginalized communities to access government markets. SWAYATT aims to remove entry barriers and enhance ease of doing business for these groups on the GeM platform.

Standardised Catalogue Listing

To know more visit: https://gem.gov.in/

As of February 2026, 10.05 crore women have been mobilised into 90.09 lakh SHGs, expanding financial inclusion and collective economic action.

Public procurement constitutes a major organised market in India. With the expansion of digital procurement through the GeM, the system has become more transparent, standardised and accessible to a wider supplier base. In order to encourage the participation of women-led micro and small enterprises (MSEs) and Self-Help Groups (SHGs) the Government introduced the Womaniya Initiative on GeM in 2019. The initiative aims to strengthen the inclusion of women entrepreneurs in public procurement by providing a designated digital interface, simplifying access requirements and creating structured pathways for women-entrepreneurs and SHGs to connect with Government buyers.

Womaniya is an inclusion-focused initiative on the GeM that helps in addressing constraints that limited women's access to formal Government markets. Under the Ministry of Commerce & Industry, it provides a dedicated digital interface through which women MSEs and SHGs can register & list their products such as handloom, jute, coir and home decor items, etc. to be purchased directly by Central Ministries and PSUs anywhere in India.

The initiative supports women entrepreneurs by improving market visibility, enabling transparent buyer-seller interaction and reducing dependence on intermediaries. It also aligns with the Government's broader inclusion priorities and supports national objectives of:

Womaniya complements the broader inclusion agenda under the SWAYATT programme.

Womaniya groups product-segments where women-led enterprises and SHGs already have strong production capacity. These categories are formally identified under the initiative and made searchable for Government buyers through curated storefronts on GeM. They include:

By listing these items within a unified category framework, GeM improves product discoverability and makes it easier for departments to source from women-led producers at scale.

The initiative harnesses specialised platform features on the GeM to open new pathways for women-led enterprises and SHGs, enabling them to access Government markets, showcase their products and steadily expand their businesses within a transparent and supportive digital ecosystem.

Women led micro and small enterprises are onboarded through a digital process using Udyam verification and essential documentation. Mobilisation and capacity building of women MSEs is further reinforced through immersive onboarding sessions conducted through offline and online training workshops by GeM.

Products are listed using uniform catalogue templates with defined technical specifications and attributes, ensuring comparability across sellers and simplifying buyer evaluation.

All procurement activities including bidding, order placement, acceptance, invoicing and payments etc., are executed digitally. This reduces intermediary dependence and enables direct engagement between women led enterprises and Government buyers.

Digitised workflows help ensure timely payments, a critical support for micro and small suppliers operating with limited working capital.

Under SWAYATT and Womaniya focused programmes, GeM conducts capacity building activities such as onboarding workshops, vernacular training and buyer seller meets across states.

Implementation of "Womaniya on GeM" is a step towards a gender inclusive procurement portal.

Government buyers place orders and create demand for Womaniya-listed products and integrating women producers into procurement cycles.

At the grassroots level, district administrations, enterprise support centres, and training institutions conduct onboarding drives, training programmes, and product catalogue workshops to enhance seller readiness.

Notably, the Womaniya Initiative has expanded significantly since its launch. In FY 2025-26:

The initiative has evolved from a specialised inclusion effort into one of the largest organised public procurement channels for women-led enterprises in the country.

Together, the interconnected roles of digital infrastructure, field-level mobilisation, capacity building, and institutional demand create a synergistic enabling environment that supports women's economic participation at scale.

By giving women-led enterprises and SHGs a direct path into one of India's largest public markets, Womaniya Initiative on GeM converts existing production strengths into formal, sustainable enterprise participation. As more women gain visibility, build capacity and connect with Government buyers, Womaniya becomes not just a procurement initiative but a pathway to greater economic independence and wider representation ensuring that public procurement reflects the capabilities and aspirations of the better half of society.

PIB Research

References

MINISTRY OF COMMERCE & INDUSTRY

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID2215001®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID2192297®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID2106076®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID1559864®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID2106076®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleaseIframePage.aspx?PRID1891303®3&lang2

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID1565237®3&lang2#:~:textCeremonial%20lamp%20being%20lit%20to,Marketplace%20the%20national%20procurement%20portal.

MINISTRY OF EXTERNAL AFFAIRS

https://indbiz.gov.in/govt-e-marketplace-launches-womaniya-initiative/

MINISTRY OF RURAL DEVELOPMENT

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleseDetailm.aspx?PRID1620881®3&lang2

https://nrlm.gov.in/outerReportAction.do?methodNameshowIndex#gsc.tab0

SANSAD: LOK SABHA

https://www.commerce.gov.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/MOC_636848992668198129_LS-04-02-2019.pdf

WORLD BANK

https://documents1.worldbank.org/curated/en/099060425063724348/pdf/P177653-7547fc12-cde0-46aa-b682-8fd13b237aa2.pdf

OTHERS

https://gem.gov.in/resources/pdf/womaniya-flyer.pdf

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/search?qwomaniya

https://gem.gov.in/aboutus

https://gem.gov.in/womaniya

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/exclusive-estore-unique-seller-groups-womaniya-womaniya-handicrafts/search#/?qwomaniya

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/exclusive-estore-unique-seller-groups-womaniya-womaniya-grocery-and-pantry/search#/?qwomaniya

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/exclusive-estore-unique-seller-groups-womaniya-womaniya-office-accessories/search#/?qwomaniya

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/exclusive-estore-unique-seller-groups-womaniya-womaniya-handloom-textiles/search#/?qwomaniya

https://mkp.gem.gov.in/exclusive-estore-unique-seller-groups-womaniya-womaniya-personal-hygiene-and-care/search#/?qwomaniya

https://www.newsonair.gov.in/gem-promotes-transparency-inclusiveness-in-public-procurement-records-%E2%82%B94-lakh-crore-transactions/

https://gem.gov.in/training/training_module

https://wep.gov.in/

https://mpsrlm.mp.gov.in/uploads/files/SVEP.pdf

https://www.serp.telangana.gov.in/AboutUs/Serp_About.jsp

https://employmentnews.gov.in/newemp/MoreContentNew.aspx?nEditorial&k90385#:~:textSelf%2DHelp%20Groups%20or%20SHGs,carrying%20out%20social%20welfare%20programmes.

PRESS INFORMATION BUREAU https://static.pib.gov.in/WriteReadData/specificdocs/documents/2025/mar/doc202532511101.pdf

https://www.pib.gov.in/factsheetdetails.aspx?id148586®3&lang1

https://www.pib.gov.in/PressReleasePage.aspx?PRID2227484®3&lang1

Click here to see pdf 

Disclaimer: Curated by HT Syndication.