ActionAid: Nigerian Women Spend Five Hours Daily on Unpaid Care

ActionAid: Nigerian Women Spend Five Hours Daily on Unpaid Care

By: Michael Mike

Women in four Nigerian states spend an average of five hours daily on unpaid domestic and care work, compared with about one hour for men, highlighting a gender disparity that ActionAid Nigeria says is undermining women’s economic opportunities and equality.

The organisation, therefore, called on the Federal and state governments to increase public investment in care services, strengthen social protection for caregivers and introduce policies to ensure men share domestic responsibilities more equitably with women.

According to ActionAid Nigeria, the National Bureau of Statistics’ Nigeria Time Use Survey 2024, conducted in Borno, Cross River, Kaduna and Lagos states, found that women aged 15 and above devoted 21 per cent of their day to unpaid domestic and care work, compared with 4.1 per cent for men.

The disparity was more pronounced in rural communities, where women spent almost six hours daily on unpaid domestic and care responsibilities, compared with less than one hour for men.

ActionAid Nigeria made the call in a statement by its Country Director, Dr Andrew Mamedu, to mark the International Day of Care and Support.

Mamedu said the disproportionate burden of unpaid care work placed on women and girls continued to restrict their access to paid employment, entrepreneurship, skills acquisition and leadership opportunities.

He said the situation also affected girls’ education, rest, recreation and personal development, particularly in communities where inadequate infrastructure and limited access to essential public services increased the time spent on household responsibilities.

“Women’s time is not an unlimited public resource. Governments must fund the services that reduce excessive care burdens, employers must support workers with care responsibilities, and men must take an equal share of care at home,” he said.

The organisation argued that unpaid care work should not be treated solely as a private household responsibility, describing it instead as an economic, social and human rights issue requiring deliberate government intervention.

It said the burden of cooking, cleaning, fetching water, caring for children, supporting older people and persons with disabilities, and looking after sick relatives fell disproportionately on women, often without financial compensation or adequate social protection.

According to the organisation, the unequal distribution of these responsibilities limits women’s ability to earn incomes, develop businesses and participate fully in public life, while reinforcing gender inequalities across households and communities.

To address the challenge, ActionAid Nigeria advocated the adoption of the 5Rs framework of care: Recognise, Reduce, Redistribute, Reward and Represent.

The framework calls for recognising unpaid care as valuable work; reducing excessive care responsibilities through improved public services, infrastructure and appropriate technology; redistributing domestic responsibilities fairly among women, men, households, employers and the state; ensuring decent work and social protection for paid care workers; and giving caregivers a meaningful voice in decisions affecting their lives.

The organisation urged the Federal and state governments to develop and adequately fund comprehensive care policies that integrate care responsibilities into development plans, labour policies, social protection frameworks and public budgets.

It also called for increased investment in reliable water and electricity supply, affordable childcare, accessible healthcare and support services for older persons and persons with disabilities.

ActionAid Nigeria further advocated expanded social protection for women caregivers, particularly those working in the informal economy, through access to social insurance, maternity benefits, pensions and other essential protections.

It urged employers to introduce family-friendly workplace policies, including fair parental leave and flexible working arrangements, while ensuring that paid care workers received decent wages, safe working conditions and social protection.

The organisation also called for improved access to mental health and psychosocial support, sexual and reproductive health services, and respite care where appropriate.

It urged households, community leaders and relevant institutions to challenge gender norms that assign domestic and caregiving responsibilities primarily to women, while encouraging men and boys to participate more equally in household work.

ActionAid Nigeria said investment in care systems was essential to achieving gender equality, advancing women’s economic justice and ensuring that the responsibilities of sustaining families and communities did not prevent women and girls from realising their full potential.

ActionAid: Nigerian Women Spend Five Hours Daily on Unpaid Care