Addressing Unpaid Care Work in Sri Lanka: The Care Project

Women’s economic rights has been a focus area of WMC from inception. We have recognised the economic contributions of women in the national economy through their employment in agriculture, the plantation sector, the apparel industry and in overseas employment migration. We have built and engaged with extensive networks of organisations that work in and on these fields, researched and published on the rights and struggles of women in the economic sphere.

Unpaid care work is increasingly becoming a focus of global discourse around gender equality, socio-economic development, and national policy formulation. The Sustainable Development Goals agreed on by leaders across the world in 2015 have gone the furthest to include unpaid care work in Goal 5, the stand-alone goal on gender equality. Yet, Sri Lanka remains slow in the recognition and uptake of these issues and there is still much confusion among policymakers, researchers, and activists in the country as to what unpaid care work is and why it should be an issue that should be addressed at the national level.

WMC embarked on the research study on Recognizing, Reducing and Redistributing of Unpaid Care Work in Sri Lanka from 2017 with the financial support from the Ford Foundation in six districts in Sri Lanka. This pioneering work in Sri Lanka had two objectives: to assess through a Time Use Survey the time that is dedicated to activities that are carried out for the well-being of household members and, attempt to input an economic value to the time that is expended on these household unpaid care activities.

Reducing women’s share of unpaid care work would allow their increased participation in the labour force, improve access to decent work, and enable greater economic stability for women and their families. It would reduce the risk of women falling into poverty, reduce gender inequalities in labour force participation, and reduce women’s economic dependency. It would strengthen women’s options to decide for themselves how best to use their time for the betterment of their lives.

Following the initial research and advocacy to recognise unpaid care work, WMC embarked on a three (03) year project as the implementing partner of the Asia Foundation project, supported by Global Affairs Canada, on the CARE Project: Addressing Unpaid Care Work in Sri Lanka..

This project aims to strengthen both the supply and demand sides of governance related to unpaid care work in Sri Lanka. The project expected to enhance both policy frameworks and community action to ensure fairer distribution of care responsibilities.

Why It Matters

Women in Sri Lanka shoulder the majority of unpaid care work, limiting their opportunities to participate in the workforce and decision-making spaces. Existing policies pay little attention to this gendered division of labour. The CARE Project works to recognise, reduce, redistribute, represent, and respond (5Rs) to unpaid care work, challenging traditional gender roles and social norms.

Project Objectives

Improve the enabling environment including policies and infrastructure to reduce and redistribute unpaid care responsibilities.
Increase the representation and participation of women and girls in decision-making processes, empowering them to claim their rights and strategic needs related to unpaid care work.

Field work in Anuradhapura, Jaffna, Nuwaraeliya, Batticaloa and Colombo

Where We Work

The project which began in August 2024 will be implemented until December 2027 with

organisations across seven districts:

Anuradhapura – Rajarata Praja Kendraya
Batticaloa – Suriya Women’s Development Center
Colombo – National Forum for Women with Disabilities
Hambantota – Women’s Development Federation
Jaffna – THOLAMAI.V
Kurunegala – Women’s Resource Center
Nuwara Eliya – Women’s Solidarity Front

Key Stakeholders

The project involves a broad network of actors, including women and men, boys and girls, community leaders, government representatives, the private sector, trade unions, and media.

Impact

By highlighting and addressing the unequal distribution of unpaid care work, the CARE Project empowers communities to value care work, reduce women’s disproportionate responsibilities, and improve access to quality care services.

How We Work

The project follows an ecological model, addressing unpaid care work at multiple levels: individual, household, community, and institutional.

Project Strategy Over Three Years

Conducting evidence based research: Conduct a Time Use Survey (TUS) to identify the intensity of unpaid care work burden over women in the project implemented areas and a survey to understand the perception towards gendered roles.
Awareness Raising: Engage communities through meetings, campaigns, and dialogues to transform discriminatory social norms and promote equitable sharing of care responsibilities.
Advocacy and Policy Influence: Work with national and sub-national stakeholders to push for policies, infrastructure, and programs that recognize, reduce, and redistribute unpaid care work.

Click above to read our report with findings from our Time Use Surveys.

Progress and Achievements So Far

Time Use Survey (TUS) – Conducted across seven districts to provide a detailed understanding of women’s care burden, perception towards gendered norms and availability of care services such as, child care, elder care, care services for persons with disabilities.
Community Pocket Meetings – Organized for women, men, youth, boys, and girls to raise awareness about unpaid care work and the gendered roles assigned to men and women that place an unfair burden of care work on women.
Coalition building among women’s rights organisations, and others working at community level towards Recognising Unpaid Care Work.