Children and COVID-19 Research Library Quarterly Digest Issue 6 (May 2023)
The crisis of care: the missing ‘C’ underpinning global crises
About
This COVID-19 Digest explores this ‘crisis of care’. It examines the evidence that has emerged in recent years on how COVID-19 has affected the care that women and children provide and receive. 12 studies, selected from the Innocenti's Children and COVID-19 Research Library, are highlighted to provide insights into several dimensions of the crisis that are highly relevant to children’s well-being and that can provide lessons for responding to other types of crises that the world is facing or will face in the future.
The pandemic, associated lockdowns, and other containment measures have had a disproportionate impact on the care and domestic work of women, particularly those who experience other intersecting inequalities, including race, class, gender identity, and location. This Digest examines the impact of the pandemic on gender imbalances in paid and unpaid work, focusing in particular on vulnerable and marginalized women and girls. Whether care and domestic work are unpaid in the home or paid, limited public or private investment in care services increases the cost of meeting families' care and domestic needs. These activities are overwhelmingly carried out by women and girls worldwide, affecting their educational and employment prospects and creating gender inequalities in leisure time. They are usually carried out without any monetary compensation or are paid at low rates. They are also likely to increase in the face of shocks and stresses such as those experienced by COVID-19.
