Female labour force participation low in country: Amitabh Kant

New Delhi: India's female labour force participation is much lower as compared to figures world over, Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, said on Friday.

"India's female labour force participation is very low at 27 per cent compared to 78 per cent of men. This is much lower compared to the figures world over," Kant said while addressing the second edition of "Gender Equality Summit" organised by Global Compact Network India - the local arm of UN Global Compact, New York.

Kant said that "there is a need to strive for gender equality, and uneven play between men and women comes at a significant economic cost that weighs very heavily on India's growth".

Kamal Singh, Executive Director, Global Compact Network India, said that "for the growth and true success of the nation, gender diversity is imperative and we should strive towards achieving it".