Google will support one million rural women entrepreneurs in India with training, mentorship and accelerator programmes, the tech giant announced on Monday during an event that also commemorated International Women’s Day. It will also train over one lakh women farmers in digital literacy.
The event, #WomenWill, recognised the disproportionate burden of the pandemic on women, with Alphabet CEO Sundar Pichai asserting the importance of providing opportunities for women. “Women are almost twice as likely to lose jobs during the pandemic and an estimated 20 million girls are at risk of not returning to school. We have the opportunity to build a future that is more inclusive—and we must take it,” he said.