Care Ecosystem

Why in news?

Recently, the need for addressing low female labour force participation rate (LFPR) through care economy has been highlighted.

What is Care Ecosystem?

• Care economy – It comprises of care work, both paid and unpaid, and direct and indirect care, provided within and outside the household.
• Direct Care – These are personal, and relational care activities, such as feeding a baby.
• Indirect care – It include activities like cooking and cleaning.
• Unpaid care – These are caring work without monetary compensation.
  • For example, nursing an ill partner or cooking for a family member.
• Paid care — It includes those works for exchange of some form of remuneration.
  • For example, services offered by domestic workers.
• Care workers are hired directly by families or through placement agencies, nursing bureaus, hospitals, home healthcare companies, and not-for-profit organisations, among others.

Why care economy is important?

• Protecting depending population – It helps in addressing the demand for childcare and care for the elderly increasing in all regions.
• Addressing demographic change - India's demographic landscape is expected to change between 2020 to 2050, necessitating more elderly care.

• Facilitating for demand - The demand for external support in the form of hired caregivers is rising in urban and peri-urban areas.
• Meeting changing societal structure - As India’s economy undergoes rapid transformation, our society is also increasingly urbanizing and nuclearizing at an unprecedented rate.
• People are moving from villages to cities and the joint family structure is being replaced by smaller nuclear entities.
• Higher economic potential – Investments in establishing care infrastructure and care services can unlock economic potential for India’s economy
• It can create new business opportunities and can generate jobs, especially for women.

What is the status of Indian women in care economy?

• Healthy development of the care economy in India is necessary to support the primary caregivers in our society.
• Women are primary caregivers across the life course of household members.
• Women in care economy – As of 2022, 36.5% of females were employed as unpaid family workers as related to 9.3% of males.
• 37.5% of FLFPR comprises of women who are not paid for the work they do, which is separate from domestic work.
• The difference between female and male unpaid family labour employment is higher in rural areas than in rban areas.
• Women aged 15-64 years spend about three times more time daily than men in unpaid domestic work.
• Economic value of women’s unpaid domestic and care work in India ranges between 15% - 17% of GDP.
• For women to participate in the economy, their care responsibilities need to shift elsewhere.
• Challenges - There are no standardised processes and it lacks minimum wages, employment standards, safety and security measures, and quality standards for care by hired workers.
• Steps to offload women’s care responsibilities
  • Reduce unpaid family labour employment
  • Relief from unpaid domestic work
  • Reduce Domestic Care Burden

What are the measures taken in India?

• Anganwadi network - Some State governments have focused on building support services through the existing Anganwadi network.
• Increased budget allocation - In the 2024-25 Budget, there has been a 3% increase in the Ministry of Women and Child Development’s budget for the integrated childcare and nutrition programme (Saksham Anganwadi and Poshan 2.0 scheme).
• Community based Crèches - Crèches for children are operational with partnership between government and non-government bodies.
• Skilling and certification – Various apex bodies are involved in the skilling and certification of different cadres of care workers.
  • Home Management and Care Givers Sector Skill Council (earlier Domestic Workers Sector Skill)
  • Healthcare Sector Skill Council
  • National Skill Development Corporation
• International coordination - The ILO Resolution on Decent Work and the Care Economy was adopted by the International Labour Conference during its 112th Session, in June 2024.
  • G20 Bali Care Economy Dialogue, have provided comprehensive recommendations to governments.
• Delhi Declaration – It was prepared under India’s leadership of G20 in 2023 that calls upon the G20 countries to
  • Promote investment in the availability and accessibility of social protection, and to affordable care infrastructure
  • Address the unequal distribution in paid and unpaid care and domestic work
  • Promote the continued participation of women in education and employment

What lies ahead?

• Formulate a comprehensive policy to define the care ecosystem from a life course perspective.
• Review the existing models of Community based Creches for replicability, financial sustainability, and scalability.
• Develop a more widespread network of creches suitable to the local context and populace is required in rural, tribal, and urban areas to facilitate the participation of women in the workforce.
• Developing a needs-based assessment of the mix of care services required across age groups, socio-economic status, and geographies.
• Address the gap in the training, skilling, and certification of a mix of care workers.
• Map supply-side actors and institutions including the public, private, and non-profit sectors.

References

1. The Hindu | India needs to develop a care ecosystem
2. PIB | India’s Care Economy