Childcare Policies & Gender Equality (LCR-ECA Virtual Workshop) Emiliana Vegas Sr. Education Economist Latin America & the Caribbean Region The World Bank

Source: OECD 2001 Female Labor Force Participation is on the rise in OECD countries…

…but women continue to be the main child caregiver  In part due to these parallel responsibilities, women in most countries continue to work fewer hours per week than men and are more likely to have part- time jobs.  Men in EU countries work, on average, 42.7 hours per week, a full ten hours more than the average for women.  Women with higher educational attainment levels are more likely to work and more likely to work full-time than women with lower levels of education. Source: OECD 2001

A framework to analyze Childcare Policies Context Economic growth Poverty Socio-economic inequality Diversity ECD Policies Health Nutrition Education Poverty Alleviation Early Childhood Development Brain development Cognitive & social development Physical well-being & growth Life outcomes Schooling Health Fertility Earnings Risky behaviors

Child Prenatal Mother (pre-natal) Parent/Caregiver Health & hygiene Maternal care Water&sanitation Preventive care Mental health Poverty alleviation CCTs Female labor force participation Household infrastructure Nutrition Food & Supplements Education Early childhood care Preschool A wide range of ECD & Gender policies

Some key questions for discussion  How to avoid unintended consequences on female labor opportunities of policies to stimulate female labor market participation?  How to ensure high quality childcare services?  How to target scarce public resources to the most needy children, women, and families?  How to improve coordination across agencies and sectors?