WeProsper: Global Assessment of Care Services: Current Status, Impact, and Policy Recommendations

The impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic highlight longstanding gender inequities in both unpaid and paid care work—and have brought care to the forefront of social and economic policy dialogues. WeProsper, a global coalition for women’s economic empowerment, developed this report to synthesize evidence to inform advocacy campaigns and policy recommendations. In this report, WeProsper makes the case for policymakers to take action on and invest in care, as they weigh the full range of COVID-19 recovery measures and other competing investment priorities.

The first in a two-part series, this report synthesizes a wide range of existing research and evidence on one aspect of care policies—care services—with a focus on low- and middle- income countries (LMICs). This includes the evaluation of existing policies and programs on childcare and long-term care (LTC), which encompasses eldercare and care for those with disabilities, with respect to women’s economic empowerment (WEE) outcomes; the broader economic costs and benefits; current levels of investment and financing; and policy considerations.

It is a critical time for policymakers to interrogate these priorities and recognize care services as strategic and effective investments for sustainable and inclusive economies. Learn more about the evidence synthesized by WeProsper and the recommended priority actions by clicking below. To download the related policy brief, click here.