NAIROBI, Kenya, Mar 28 – A recent report by the Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) organization shows that 88pc of Kenyan women work in the informal sector.
According to the study however, women who work in the informal sector are more vulnerable to health and economic shocks that could be brought on by emerging pandemics because of the precarious nature of their jobs and their reliance on public spaces.
“More women than men are employed in Kenya in both formal and informal employment, however, the majority (88%) of women work in informal sector,” the report stated.
“These women have limited or no paid sick leave or access to social protection and they lack or have few protections against dismissal in their work places.”
The report revealed that during the COVID-19 pandemic, 51.2percent of women in Kenya lost their jobs.
Before the pandemic , the women in Kenya carried out over twice as much unpaid care and domestic work as men.
“This unequal division of labor significantly limits women’s ability to earn an income and realize their human rights, “it stated.
“Despite it’s substantial socio-economic contribution to national well being, women’s care work remains invisible and unaccounted for economic decision-making.”
Also during the pre-COVID, the gender gap in unpaid care work closely mirrored that of work for pay or profit, where women spent three times more than men in unpaid care work; however, the pandemic further accelerated the care burden.
“In June 2020, a CGD report indicated that 23 percent of women business owners surveyed across the globe reported spending six or more hours per day on care work compared to 11 percent of men,“ the report indicated.
Additionally, it stated that in Kenya, a higher proportion of women than men spent more time in unpaid care work.
The Commission advised Kenya’s civil society sector which focuses on gender equality and social inclusion, to assist people affected, particularly from grassroots organizations in advancing a wide vision of gender equality and social inclusion for a shared change.
The Gender Equality and Social Inclusion (GESI) report analysis took place between July 2022 and March 2023 which involved primary and secondary data analysis.
The report involved stakeholders including government, civil society, academia and development partners.
