Unpaid care and domestic work a major obstacle to girls’ education

14.11.23

UNESCO, General Conference - Taking the floor as part of the General Policy debate, MMM denounced the impacts of gendered stereotypes and gender roles on girls' access to education. As care needs are expected to rise significantly, we also called for changing mentalities to prevent young girls' futures from being decided as early as age 5, and promote a more equitable sharing of unpaid domestic and care work between boys and girls during childhood - a necessary step to progress on gender equality.

The following is our full statement, delivered by MMM representative Ilhame Boirie-Joubert. 

I would like to begin by reading a few revealing testimonies:

  • Reine, a mere child from Togo says: “To be a good daughter, I should do housework and do what my parents want. Good girls behave well at home and do everything they are told to do. My parents make my sisters and I work much harder than my brothers – and we think they’re right.”
  • And Valeria, another young girl from Salvador says: “Sometimes I have to take care of mommy if she’s sick. Sometimes I can do something for her, like if she can’t get up. That is why I hardly go to school”.

These powerful yet troubling statements come from young girls, deprived of an empowering education, because they’re girls and kept busy at home.

This reality is shared by huge numbers of young girls around the world.

  • Girls aged 5-9 spend 30% more time on work around the home than boys of the same age. These mechanisms, put in place from an early age determine the lives of these young girls, jeopardizing their ability to access an education that would otherwise make them autonomous.
  • Furthermore, figures predict that by 2030, the number of care recipients (children under the age of 15 and persons above 60 years old) will rise to 2.3 billion people out of 8.5 billion globally.

Talking about educating and empowering young girls without taking into account the considerable weight they carry in domestic work is absolute nonsense.

The Nobel Prize-winning Harvard economist Claudia Goldin has demonstrated that differences in pay and labor force participation cannot be attributed to biological differences, but to the division of unpaid caregiving and household labor between heterosexual couples.

Available figures prove it, categorically. The international community recognizes the importance of this systemic problem.

We believe a similar parallel can be drawn with obstacles many girls face in accessing an education.

It is therefore imperative that we – States, civil society, NGOs – take more direct action and intervene much earlier to prevent young girls’ futures from being decided as early as age 5. Reflexes and beliefs are imprinted from earliest childhood.

At MMM, many grass roots associations in our member network work to change mentalities, for instance:

  • Providing young girls with adapted economic empowerment, that gives them a status in their communities and higher educational possibilities for both themselves and their children.
  • Raising awareness amongst young men, deconstructing preconceived ideas about masculinity, and encouraging them to play their part in the home.

Such initiatives must be collectively supported, amplified, and replicated.

We need to mobilize our forces. Act now. And act together.

MMM Statement for download

 

The 42nd General Conference took place from 7 to 22 November 2023 at the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.

 

Most read articles

Time Poverty and the Motherhood Penalty – Unveiling Economic and Social Injustices

09.07.24

Mothers play an essential role in families by ensuring their loved ones are nourished, educated, and healthy, but their unpaid care work often leads to economic and social injustices, known

Lire plus

Envisioning care as a common thread to global crises

29.07.24

UN New York - Our virtual HLPF side-event brought together experts to shed light on how the various global crises we face (in particular climate change and other environmental crises,

Lire plus

We call for multi-stakeholder approach to recognise and support unpaid care work

21.07.24

UN New York - Participating in the meeting of the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) on care and support systems, MMM reaffirmed the principle of co-responsibility, which should underpin

Lire plus
See all the articlesof the category

Latest News from MMM and its Network

Unpaid Care at the Core: A Catalyst for Achieving the SDGs

06.07.25

UN New York / HLPF - Register now to join us online for our High Level Political Forum side-event.

Read more

Placing Target 5.4 at the Core: A Key to Accelerating SDG Synergies

06.07.25

UN New York – Ahead of the 2025 High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) MMM's written statement focuses on Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 5 on Gender equality, which is under review this year. More specifically

Read more

Financing for development: time to invest in Care and Wellbeing

06.07.25

From 30 June to 3 July, Make Mothers Matter was in Sevilla, Spain, for the 4th UN International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4). Here’s a look back at this major UN event and the key takeaways

Read more

Financing for development matters for mothers

05.07.25

Following the 4th International Conference on Financing for Development (FfD4) in Sevilla, Spain, we explore why Financing for Development is critical for mothers around the world.

Read more

Recognising Unpaid Care Work and addressing Its Unequal Distribution: A Key Step in Tackling Informal Employment

15.06.25

UN Geneva – At the 113th International Labour Conference (ILC), Make Mothers Matter (MMM) brought the perspectives of mothers and other unpaid caregivers to two key agenda topics: the transition to formal emp

Read more

Make Mothers Matter calls for action on Maternal Mental Health at EU Summit

07.06.25

As part of European Mental Health Week, Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) András Kulja and Zoltán Tarr (both EPP) hosted a two-day Mental Health Summit on Prevention and Recovery in Modern Society 

Read more