Union Minister for Labour & Employment and Youth Affairs & Sports, Dr. Mansukh Mandaviya, on Tuesday highlighted India’s inclusive growth model at the inaugural plenary of the Second World Summit for Social Development in Doha. Addressing a High-Level Round Table on Strengthening the Three Pillars of Social Development, the Minister emphasized how India has successfully combined economic growth with social inclusion through digital innovation and financial empowerment.
“India has demonstrated that a country can empower millions of its citizens by combining digital innovation with financial inclusion and ensuring that economic progress leads to social inclusion,” said Mandaviya.
The Minister underscored that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership, India has taken decisive action across all three pillars of social development – poverty eradication, employment generation, and social inclusion. He noted that over 170 million new jobs were created between 2016–17 and 2023–24, women’s participation in the workforce has doubled, and unemployment has declined from 6% to 3.2%.
Mandaviya also highlighted labour reforms such as the simplification of labour laws into four codes, and India’s progress toward universal pension coverage. He added that India’s robust digital infrastructure has enabled seamless delivery of welfare benefits to over 1.4 billion citizens, ensuring transparency and efficiency.
“As a result of these efforts, India’s social protection coverage has surged from 19% in 2015 to 64.3% in 2025,” he said, noting that the International Social Security Association (ISSA) has recognized India’s efforts with the Award for Outstanding Achievement in Social Security this year.
During his visit, Mandaviya also held bilateral meetings with key international partners. In his discussion with the Minister of Labour of Mauritius, both sides explored avenues for collaboration in skill development, labour mobility, digital labour platforms, and social protection.
He offered India’s support in capacity building for Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) and shared insights on India’s Digital Public Goods in the labour ecosystem – including the National Career Service (NCS) portal and e-Shram database, the world’s largest Aadhaar-verified registry of unorganised workers. Mauritius expressed interest in leveraging these innovations for bilateral cooperation.
In another meeting with Armida Salsiah Alisjahbana, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (UNESCAP), Mandaviya reaffirmed India’s commitment to regional cooperation in disaster management, skill recognition, and digital welfare delivery. He highlighted India’s achievement in lifting 250 million citizens out of multidimensional poverty in the past decade, crediting digital governance and direct benefit transfer systems for the transformation.
India’s participation at the summit reflected its growing global leadership in digital social protection, skills development, and inclusive labour markets. The engagements in Doha strengthened bilateral partnerships, enhanced cooperation with UNESCAP, and reinforced India’s position as a model for combining economic progress with social justice.
