A 2017 labour force survey revealed that 81% of women's work is not valued while only 18% of men's work is left out of evaluation.
Experts said that now is the time to economically recognize the unpaid work of women through the satellite system of accounts. Its financial value should also be seen as part of the national budget.
They said this at a seminar titled "Recognition of Unpaid Care Work: A Step Towards Financial and Social Empowerment of Women" organized by Manusher Jonno Foundation (MJF) in the capital’s Mohakhali area on Sunday.
At this time, Waseqa Ayesha Khan, the state minister for finance, commented that the economy of Smart Bangladesh will not be smart without recognizing and valuing women's unpaid work.
A panellist said: “We have demanded the enhancement of the status of women at all levels, evaluation of women's domestic and service work, inclusion in GDP and reform of national income measurement system.”
In the event, the state minister said: “Disregarding the unpaid care work of women is a global problem. There is no reason to exclude women's household and care work from GDP. We are trying to include unpaid care work in the budget. Because without care economy, the economy of Smart Bangladesh will not be smart.”
She also emphasized recognizing the work of domestic workers since it is not easy to work outside the house without their help with housework.
According to a survey conducted by BIDS in 2021, women's domestic and service work was worth Tk5,30,700 crore equivalent to 14.8% of GDP that year. Men's contribution to GDP that year was only 2.8%.
Referring to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s instruction to include the care work of women in our GDP calculation, Shaheen Anam, executive director of MJF, said: “Research of CPD found that the unpaid work value is three times more than the paid work of women. It is high time to recognize this unpaid care work economically through a satellite system of accounts and show how much that accounts for and that we include the value of the unpaid work in the budget.”
Banasree Mitra Neogi, director (Program) of MJF, presented the keynote at the event.
She said: “National recognition of unpaid care work will strengthen the change of norms that we are trying to change for such a long term. We need the recognition of unpaid care and household work both socially and economically. Government has a major role to play to accomplish this.”
Since 2012, through a campaign titled “Morjaday Gori Samata”, MJF has been demanding to include women's unpaid care work in the GDP and to reform the national income measurement system. It will increase women’s dignity at all levels.
Economist Hossain Zillur Rahman, former adviser to the caretaker government and executive director of Power and Participation Research Centre (PPRC), said: “Specific steps need to be considered to aim much higher. We have to change the norms and sense of social responsibilities. Toxic masculinity is a big issue. These call for additional policy and budgetary steps.”
UN Women Representative to Bangladesh Gitanjali Singh said that the process of recognition has to be a collective approach. Partnerships are fundamental and collaboration is the key here.
Dr Kazi Iqbal, research director of Bangladesh Institute of Development Studies (BIDS), Dr Sayema Haque Bidisha, professor of Economics, University of Dhaka and Anisatul Fatema Yousuf, member of MJF’s governing body, also spoke at the event.
