Background Emerging market economies face a significant credit gap and access to finance is considered the biggest obstacle for enterprises. Banks have been the traditional source of funding, but the financial crisis has led banks to be even more reluctant, which is creating an active debate about the importance of broadening the range of funding options available beyond banks. Such …
Counting care: Everything you need to know about the new Household Care Survey toolkit
‘What doesn’t get measured doesn’t get seen’. I’ve heard this phrase so many times but never has it felt truer than when it comes to unpaid care and domestic work. Unpaid care and domestic work is the vital work that keeps our societies and economies ticking, keeping us healthy, nourished and nurtured and keeping our homes clean and tidy. But …
‘What will the others think?’ Reflections on social norms and unpaid care work in Tunisia
“Shhhh, the Others are listening! We can’t do that, the Others will see us!” I come from a migrant family, and we are what we could call a ‘modern’ one. However, this has never prevented my mom from being obsessed by the ‘Others’, how we should be like ‘Them’ and do as ‘They’ would expect us to do. I remember asking her, how …
10 brilliant questions you asked about Oxfam’s inequality report
Oxfam’s new inequality report, which reveals that the world’s billionaires —just 2,153 people— have more wealth than 4.6 billion people, is making headlines across the globe. Since we launched our report, we have received lots of interesting questions. Here’s our response to ten of the most frequently asked questions. 1. What does women’s unpaid care work have to do with billionaires? …
Why businesses are addressing unpaid care work
Sarah Hall, Oxfam’s Women’s Economic Empowerment and Care (WE-Care) Programme Manager, explores what businesses stand to gain from easing the burden of unpaid care and domestic work. A productive, healthy workforce is the backbone of any successful business. A ground-breaking new report from Oxfam and Unilever shows how businesses are identifying and addressing the challenges that limit workers’ full participation. A hidden, and often underestimated barrier, is the unequal responsibility for unpaid care and domestic work that frustrates the progression and productivity of women employees. For many businesses globally, the first …
Feminist solutions to man-made economic inequality
Francesca Rhodes, Gender Policy Advisor, Man-Kwun Chan, Influencing Advisor, Women’s Economic Empowerment and Care, and Anam Parvez Butt, Gender Justice Research Lead at Oxfam GB outline some of the key ways public spending and taxation could reduce gender inequality. In the words of feminist activist, Paula Varela: ‘Women… have the majority of the precarious jobs, and we perform the overwhelming …
How improving access to water can help reduce care work
Changes to infrastructure and equipment can make a real difference to time spent on care work . Lucia Rost and the WE-Care team share research from the Philippines, Uganda and Zimbabwe. Everyone needs care, but in many countries, it is mostly women who are responsible for providing it. Heavy care work responsibilities can restrict women’s opportunities for education, employment, political …
Women’s work? Challenging gender roles in the Philippines
‘We forget our tiredness when the kiss is there.’ Nikki van der Gaag reports from the Philippines on a partnership that is changing ideas about men’s and women’s roles in the home. There is a bright red advertisement on the road from Tacloban airport to the town. It has a photograph of a woman with pale skin and red lipstick …
How businesses can tackle the social norms that limit women
Across the world, women make a significant contribution to global supply chains, in spite of complex hurdles that limit their inclusion and their leadership. How can businesses make it easier for women to fulfil their potential? Claudia Canepa shares some ideas from Oxfam’s private sector partnerships. The UN High Level Panel on Women’s Economic Empowerment (HLP) recently identified seven key …
Taking women’s empowerment beyond the paid economy
How can development programmes support women’s economic empowerment while taking into account the burden of unpaid care work? Mar Maestre shares her research findings as part of the discussions taking place this week at the WEE Global Learning Forum 2017. The advancement of women’s rights and economic empowerment in market systems contributes to the economic well-being of families, communities, and …