Women, caregivers and househelps remain unpaid and exploited in Kenya - report

Damaris Odawa, 23, lives with her parents in one of the major towns in Kakamega County.

Being the second-born daughter after her elder sister, who left for marriage, she takes the lead in taking care of most domestic affairs since the parents are mostly unavailable at home.

Adjacent to their home is the family shop, which she runs as a support source of income for the family.

Despite admitting that the basic domestic chores, like cooking, washing and additionally now running the family shop business, are taking a toll on her, Odawa says she is not compensated for any of the work she does.

"At some point, I feel trapped here, to a point I've not been able to seriously engage my parents on matters of continuity with my education since I finished my secondary education in 2019," Odawa said.

Odawa's case reflects the widespread issue of unpaid care work in households across the country.

According to the Centre for Domestic Training and Development, unpaid care work also takes the form of exploitation of vulnerable female househelps.

Generally, the care economy is a critical sector that includes paid and unpaid work that supports caregiving for children, the elderly and people with disabilities.

The international lobby group, World Economic Forum (WEF), reiterates that the care economy not only sustains human activity for current and future generations but also safeguards the right to give and receive care.

"The social and economic value of the care economy remains mostly invisible. Care is what makes all other jobs possible, as it encompasses relationships and services, both paid and unpaid, that make lives possible," WEF says.

"Individuals in formal sector employment in companies and governments, for example, can work because children, older adults and their loved ones in need of care are being cared for. If this care work did not take place, it would be virtually impossible to be employed outside of the home."

Not only is care indispensable for the rest of the economy to work, but care work in and of itself is an untapped source of employment that is growing. Investing in care creates jobs, the lobby adds in part.

WEF estimates that unpaid care work, if compensated, would represent nine per cent of global GDP, just about $11 trillion in real-time figures, yet the social and economic value of the care economy remains mostly invisible.

Gender play

Despite being a crucial part of a society's well-being and social and economic development, reports note that women bear a disproportionate share of the care work, which can lead to poverty and opportunity costs.

The international lobby says this is one of the main drivers of inequality, as women globally spend on average three times more hours than men on care work, but the figures differ among countries.

In Kenya, 'Time Use Survey 2021' report by the Kenya National Bureau of Statistics (KNBS) shows women spend at least 3 hours and 36 minutes more than their male counterparts per day on unpaid care and domestic work.

This is because men spend more time on unproductive activities of up to five hours per day compared to less than three hours for women.

The report reveals that, on a national level, women dedicate an average of 4 hours and 30 minutes daily, accounting for 18.7 per cent of their time, to unpaid care and domestic tasks.

In contrast, men spend only 54 minutes, which represents 3.6 per cent of their time.

The findings also show that this trend is more pronounced in rural areas compared to urban settings, where working women average about 4 hours and 12 minutes on similar activities.

Girls aged 15-19 engage in unpaid care and domestic work for 15.2 per cent of their day, or approximately 3 hours and 36 minutes, while their male counterparts spend just one hour.

Elderly individuals over 65 years commit at least 2 hours and 54 minutes to these tasks.

Notably, Marsabit recorded the highest average, with individuals spending around 7 hours and 12 minutes.

Other regions with significant time spent on unpaid domestic work include Wajir, Samburu, Mandera, and Garissa, which are primarily arid and semi-arid areas.

According to the United Nations, women perform over 75 per cent of all unpaid care work.

In low-income countries, rural women can spend up to 14 hours daily on these responsibilities.

Interestingly, the findings indicate that men allocate more time to religious and social activities than women, challenging the stereotype that women are more socially engaged and spend more time on religious practices.

Call to action

It is on this basis that lobby groups and experts from across the globe are calling for the prioritisation of the care economy at the macroeconomic, policy and cultural levels.

"If we do not address the care economy directly, every other investment and effort is bound to fail," the World Economic Forum (WEF) warns.

"The success of this holistic and integral approach to the care economy depends on the government, businesses and communities working together. To attain equitable and sustainable growth, we need to guarantee the right to give and receive care."

This also echoes the call for the Kenyan government in the recent past by lobby groups to ratify and implement the International Labour Organisation's (ILO's) Convention 189, which aims to improve the working conditions of domestic workers.

The convention seeks to formalise domestic workers and recognise them as employees with the same rights and protections as other workers.

Its guidelines also seek to improve domestic workers' working conditions by ensuring fair wages, reasonable working hours and adequate rest periods.

Nevertheless, the convention seeks to provide social protection for the caregivers by offering them access to healthcare, retirement benefits and maternity leave.