BHUBANESWAR: The participation of women in the country's workforce increased to 37 per cent in the 2022-23 fiscal, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan said.

Speaking at the 'Rozgar Mela' here, Pradhan said the figure was 23 per cent in 2017-18.

"There has been balanced growth in society, as there has been a rise in women's participation in the workforce," he said, noting that women are more hard-working than men.

The Narendra Modi government's women-focused schemes have helped in raising the participation of women in the workforce, Pradhan said on Saturday.

The Centre has been giving priority to women in policy-making and leadership roles, he said.

The minister also underscored the importance of re-skilling and up-skilling working women to help them adapt to changing technologies.

The rate of unemployment in the country has come down to 3.7 per cent in 2022-23 from 6 per cent in 2017-18, he said.

At the programme, Pradhan distributed appointment letters of different central organisations to 172 people.