Women at the heart of recovery

Women at the heart of recovery

By, Shoko Noda is UNDP Resident Representative in India; Atul Bagai is Head, UN Environment Country Office, India

Context

• The recovery measures undertaken by the government through fiscal stimulus packages is offering India two golden opportunities: one, to build climate resilience for the most vulnerable by ensuring that stimulus measures are green; and two, to meaningfully address long-standing gender equality issues.

Societal impact of the pandemic

• The pandemic has exacted a heavy toll. Fragile health systems and frontline health workers are overburdened and lives and livelihoods impacted.
• The poor, Adivasis, migrants, informal workers, sexual minorities, people with disabilities and women all face a greater brunt than most.
• Beyond this, the causes and effects of climate change — stressed agriculture, food insecurity, unplanned urban growth, thinning forest covers, rising temperatures and shrinking water resources — have also hit vulnerable groups disproportionately.

Vulnerable group

• Women in particular have their work cut out for them.
• Greater demands of unpaid care work during the pandemic and rising rates of reported violence are a stark reminder of the work that remains to be done.
• According to the India Voluntary National Review 2020, female labour force participation rate for the 15-59 age group is showing a declining trend and stands at 25.3%.
• This is one of the lowest rates in the world.
• Meanwhile, the International Monetary Fund estimates that equal participation of women in the workforce will increase India’s GDP by 27%.
• The Indian government has invested nearly $22.5 billion in COVID-19 recovery.
• Strengthening social protection using targeted and appropriate fiscal and policy measures is a good start.
• Aligning these recovery packages with India’s commitments on climate change by investing in green jobs will improve lives and make our planet healthier.
• These green investments ought to be reflected across agriculture, urban planning, energy and the health sectors and in climate-resilient civil works, including under MGNREGA.
• Women, particularly those from indigenous and marginalised communities, play a significant yet unsung role in various sectors.
• Comprising more than 50% of the agricultural labour force, and nearly 14% of all entrepreneurs, women’s relationship with the environment and the informal economy can be a useful lever of action to transform the lives and livelihoods of their families and communities.

Equipping women with skills

• Disha, a UNDP initiative supported by the IKEA Foundation, has reached one million women and girls with skills and livelihood opportunities.
• This initiative has shown the benefits of investing in local jobs for women and vulnerable communities.
• These investments energise local economies, reduce carbon emissions, enhance climate resilience and disrupt social norms and behaviours that restrict women’s participation in the workforce.
• Another example comes from an initiative by the Self-Employed Women’s Association (SEWA) and the Electronics Sector Skills Council of India, and supported by the UN Environment Programme.
• By training young rural women to develop a cadre of 15,000 solar technicians for the maintenance of solar pumps in remote locations, the initiative will not only introduce clean energy options but also reduce production costs.
• Accelerating the transition to renewable energy will lower carbon footprints and can help provide sustainable livelihoods to poor women.

Way forward:

• Creating the right financial incentives, fostering sustainable public-private partnerships and enabling women entrepreneurs to access markets, training and mentoring will be critical in scaling up these approaches.
• The Asian Development Bank projects that India’s GDP growth rate will rebound to 8% in 2021-22. Putting women at the heart of this recovery will make it faster, just and inclusive.