The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic is not gender-neutral, as it affects men and women differently. Therefore, we must not be gender blind in our responses to the pandemic, or else women will carry a disproportionately higher economic cost than men.
Globally, women are more vulnerable to economic shocks wrought by crises such as the coronavirus pandemic.
Why are women so at risk?
Firstly, women are more likely to lose their jobs than men. In many countries, women’s participation in the labour market is often in the form of temporary employment.
Across the world, women represent less than 40% of total employment but make up 57% of those working on a part-time basis, according to the International Labor Organization.
As the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic roll through economies, reducing employment opportunities and triggering layoffs, temporary workers, the majority of whom are women, are expected to bear the heaviest brunt of job losses.
Safety nets not wide enough
Many women will not be rescued by social safety nets as access to safety nets frequently depends upon a formal participation in the labour force.
But since women tend to work without clear terms of employment, they often are not entitled to reliable social protection such as health insurance, paid sick and maternity leave, pensions and unemployment benefits.
In many developing countries, women are either self-employed or work as contributing family workers, for example in family farms.
In South Asia, over 80% of women in non-agricultural jobs are in informal employment; in sub-Saharan Africa this figure is 74%; and in Latin America and the Caribbean, 54%of women in non-agricultural jobs participate in informal employment.
Limited access to credit
Women entrepreneurs are often discriminated against when attempting to access credit. This will be a challenge as credit will be of paramount importance in the survival of firms.
Without open and favourable lines of credit, many female entrepreneurs will be forced to close their businesses.
Safeguard gender progress
As governments take steps to address the economic and social effects of COVID-19, they should not let it reverse the gender equality progress achieved in recent decades.
Support measures in response to COVID-19 should go beyond workers who hold formal employment and include informal, part-time and seasonal workers, most of whom are women.
This is particularly necessary in female-dominated spheres such as the hospitality, food and tourism sectors, now at a standstill due to confinement measures by governments.
Some countries are already moving in this direction. For example, Italy is considering putting into place support measures to cover informal and temporary workers once their contracts are over.
In addition, private-sector financial support and access to credit should be equally available to women and men.
The coronavirus pandemic presents us with an opportunity to effect systemic changes that could protect women from bearing the heaviest brunt of shocks like these in the future. Our ability to bounce back from this crisis is dependent on how we include everyone equally. If more women take part in shaping a new social and economic order, chances are that it will be more responsive to everyone’s needs and make us all more resilient to future shocks.
Original source: UNCTAD
Published on 01 April 2020
