To respond to this issue, the Foundation’s programmes are supporting frontline healthcare workers not only with personal protective equipment (PPE) and medical supplies, but also training on how to recognise and respond to signs of sexual and gender-based violence, using a survivor-centred response. They are also supporting resources for women in crisis. For example, in Mozambique, AKF is partnering with psychology and legal aid organisations to make sure a hotline is available for women who need help.

Some suggestions for action:

• Support or donate to a local women’s shelter or national network of women’s shelters.
• Be aware of the #SignalForHelp, developed to help women in dangerous situations indicate during a video call that they need help.

Caregiving at home and at work

Whether it’s healthcare workers on the front lines, children home from school all day, or nursing homes struggling to contain the virus, COVID-19 has put caregiving in the spotlight.

Women make up 70 percent of the global healthcare workforce, mostly as frontline workers like nurses. This means they are more exposed to the virus and have higher risk of infection.

Women also work as caregivers in the informal sector, such as providing home care for seniors. Jobs in the informal sector – which are held overwhelmingly by women, even outside of caregiving roles – offer less security and fewer protections like health insurance or paid sick leave, putting these workers at increased risk.

And in the household, the trend continues. Around the world, women spend an average of two to 10 hours on unpaid care work for every hour spent by men. Add in the closures of schools and childcare, and the burden of caregiving and domestic tasks grows even heavier for women, even in healthy households.

Kids practicing the piano in the background of a conference call or poking their heads into the webcam frame have become a welcome moment of entertainment in many now-virtual workplaces. But in many households, a lack of childcare means that women who are still employed are under disproportionate strain. This is particularly acute for those who can’t work from home and may have to reduce their hours or quit their jobs altogether.

To respond to this challenge, AKF programmes are ensuring that women engaging in care work, including those on the front lines like community health volunteers, receive PPE and other supplies to keep them safe, and support for child care and safe transportation.

The Foundation is also helping women entrepreneurs to pivot their businesses to continue to support themselves and their families during the pandemic. For example, in Afghanistan, women with tailoring businesses have started making and selling face masks.

Some suggestions for action:

• At home: If you live in a household with other adults (or children old enough to do chores), do a “time audit.” Create a simple spreadsheet and track your time in 15-minute increments for a day or week. Compare each person’s allocation to earning an income, doing household chores and domestic tasks, and recreation. If there are inequalities, look for opportunities to even the load.
• In the workplace: Implement policies and practices to alleviate competing priorities at work and at home. UN Women, UNICEF, and the International Labour Organization have released a set of recommendations for employers.

Women’s leadership

Around the world, women are active members of their communities. However, at the highest levels where policies and decisions are made, their voices are strikingly absent. While women are the majority of the global healthcare workforce, particularly on the front lines, they are under-represented in the management and leadership teams. Women healthcare workers have spoken out about their lack of participation in COVID-19 response decision-making, in Italy and other countries.

When women aren’t at the decision-making table, their unique experiences and views aren’t factored into the process. This can lead to major oversights in designing effective and sustainable responses that meet everyone’s needs.

In Uganda, for example, AKF’s COVID-19 response includes partnerships with local women’s organisations, which represent and work with women in their communities. The Foundation provides funding for these partners to develop and implement initiatives tailored to their needs.

Some suggestions for action:

• It doesn’t matter if you’re leading a pandemic response, managing a team, or forming a neighbourhood committee: Make sure women (particularly women from diverse backgrounds) are at the table and that their views are heard and acted upon.
• Make a donation to a local or national organisation that promotes women’s leadership.

A better “new normal”?

Whether we’re talking about home, the workplace, or the halls where laws and policies are made, inequality is not new. COVID-19 is simply forcing us to confront these inequalities in new, more visible ways.

And of course, this is not just about women and girls.

Any groups that were marginalised in the “before times” – women and girls, yes, but also racialized communities, people with disabilities, low-wage workers and the elderly – are now facing even more strains and challenges when it comes to coping with and recovering from the pandemic.

In all areas of our lives, we are changing our routines and adopting new ways of doing business. As we talk about the future, we keep hearing predictions about the “new normal” and what it will look like. This is an opportunity to examine the structures around us, and change them to benefit everyone.

This text was adapted from an article published on the AKF Canada website. Learn more about the Foundation’s response to coronavirus around the world.