‘Entrepreneurship a less desirable career choice in India’ , says study

Entrepreneurship is a less desirable career choice in India when compared to its peers in the least developed economies as well as in Brazil, China and South Africa, says a report. According to Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), a global consortium researching on entrepreneurship, only 39.3 per cent in India think entrepreneurship as a good career choice. The figure for India is less than the factor-driven (least developed) economies as well as the BRICS nations, except Russia as the data for Russia was not available.

According to World Economic Forum, the countries RISKY AFFAIR that compete primarily on the use of unskilled labour and natural resources are categorised asfactor-driven economies. As per the GEM report, Burkina, Faso, Cameron, Senegal, India, Iran, Kazakhstan and Russian Federation are among the factor-driven economies, while Brazil and China are part of efficiency-driven economies.

In China, 65.9 per cent respondents said they think entrepreneurship as a good career choice, followed by South Africa (73.8 per cent) and Brazil 77.7 per cent. "In India, 38 per cent adults perceive good opportunities to start a business and 38 per cent adults believe they have capabilities to start a business, while 44 per cent feel that the fear of failure is preventing them from taking the plunge," the survey said. The survey found that in India, 3.2 per cent adults are 'nascent entrepreneurs' (actively involved in setting up a business), while 7.7 per cent are 'new business owners' (in operation for more than three months but less than 42 months).

The report further noted that India's entrepreneurial exit rate is the second lowest among all GEM countries, which is indeed a positive factor. Sunil Shukla, GEM India Team Leader and Director, EDIIAhmedabad said during 2015-16 and 2016-17 there is an incremental growth in Improvement-DrivenEntrepreneurial Activity in India.

"In 2015/16 the Improvement-Driven entrepreneurial activity in our country (India) was 34.3 per cent," Shukla said.

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