Kazakhstan Announces Establishment of G-Index Institute for Women's Entrepreneurship

At the fourth general assembly meeting of the Global Council of Business Women held in the capital Astana, it was decided to establish the G-Index Institute to develop the methodological foundations of women's entrepreneurship. Designed as an independent research and analysis platform, this institute aims not only to measure the economic potential of female executives and entrepreneurs in the country but also to identify sectoral bottlenecks and opportunities with scientific data. The structure to be established is planned to serve as a critical database for increasing female employment and ensuring the sustainable growth of small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). It was emphasized that the platform will be an objective mechanism analyzing economic trends and guiding policymakers, rather than just a ranking or certification system.

Zhanna Baidasheva, the founder of the Council, stated in her announcement that priorities such as human capital development and the localization of production are defined in public policies, but high-quality analytical data is essential to achieve these goals. Baidasheva expressed the need for a detailed research base to understand where industrial demand originates, which regions have localization potential, and which suppliers are ready to grow. Sharing the information that nearly half (%48.5) of the SMEs in Kazakhstan are managed by women, Baidasheva explained that G-Index will identify the obstacles and economic opportunities faced by these businesses, drawing a roadmap for state institutions and international organizations. Additionally, it was particularly emphasized that the institute is not a financial instrument and does not directly select suppliers, but contributes strategically to women's entrepreneurship by providing an analytical framework.

Kazakhstan's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Culture and Information, Aida Balayeva, who participated in the meeting with a video message, emphasized that the status of women is one of the most important indicators of an advanced state and that the protection of women's rights must be an unconditional priority of public policies. Balayeva, who also serves as the head of the National Commission for Women's Affairs, Family and Population Policy under the Presidency, stated that the role of women in the economy is gaining increasing importance, which is a pleasing development. She shared information that there are currently more than one million registered women entrepreneurs in the country and women account for a significant part of employment in the SME sector. Balayeva noted that these figures are only part of women's contribution to the national economy and that state-supported mechanisms will continue to increase this contribution in the future.

However, current data show that businesses under female management are largely concentrated in the service sector, and unfortunately, female representation is low in large-scale and high-tech entrepreneurship fields. To eliminate this imbalance, the priority goal of the government and relevant institutions is to enable women to establish themselves in the era of rapidly changing digital technologies and artificial intelligence. In this context, the establishment of the G-Index Institute is of strategic importance in terms of taking concrete steps to increase women's access to technology and finance. The participation of United Nations representatives, international financial institutions, investors, and development organizations in the meeting once again revealed the importance of the issue not only on a national but also on a global scale.