Unpaid Care Work and Gender Equality in the Context of Social Protection

Recognise the Roles and Contributions of Women and Lobby for the Formulation of Gender Sensitive Policies and Legal Framework in Zambia and SADC Region

Unpaid care work is seen as a female responsibility across all regions of the world. Women spend on average between three (3) and six (6) hours per day on unpaid care work activities, while men spend between half (1/2) an hour and two (2) hours according to OECD Development Centre, December 2014. Therefore, gender inequalities in unpaid care work are observed all around the world, even if there are regional variations. Overall, women spend more time on unpaid care activities than men representing an average of two to ten times that of men. It is imperative to recognize, reduce and redistribute unpaid care work. This effort would require strong collaboration among stakeholders and considering the significant role of social protection in promoting gender equality and empowerment of women.

The Country Focus Workshop held in Lusaka, Zambia by the FES Zambia office in collaboration with other FES Offices in the SADC region as well as partners, carried the theme Unpaid Care Work and Gender Equality in the Context of Social Protection. The workshop worked as a platform to review progress, recognise the role of women in the care economy and advocate for the need for governments to recognise the roles and contributions of women and lobby for the formulation of gender sensitive policies and legal framework in Zambia and SADC region. Participants agreed that Countries should have home-grown solutions and continue having relevant conversations that advocate for gender-sensitive policy, with the recognition that there is limited access to social protection programs by many women. Public care system needs much more advocacy work in collaboration with CSOs and other non-state actors to recognize, reduce and redistribute unpaid care work. Enhancing networking and collaborated efforts is key to raise awareness of unpaid care work and the related vulnerability it causes women.