Strengthening Capacities for Effective Women Economic Empowerment and Care Work Interventions in Uganda

Updated on: 2023-09-25 12:11:10

The project is designed to support national policy processes and actions, including research uptake by policymakers, to enhance Women Economic Empowerment and tackle unpaid care work in Uganda.

Strengthening capacity for effective women economic empowerment (WEE) and care work interventions in Uganda is an 18-month collaborative project implemented by a consortium comprising Oxfam in Uganda and ACODE. Anchored on a wider spectrum of the Growth and Equal Opportunities for Women (GrOW) East Africa Initiative to spur gender transformation through advancing gender equality in the world of work with a focus on gender segregation, unpaid care, and women’s collective agency.

The project is designed to support national policy processes and actions, including research uptake by policymakers, to enhance WEE and tackle unpaid care work in Uganda. The Project is expected to increase the effectiveness of WEE and care work policies and programmes by 2025; improve the design of the early childhood development policy; and support the implementation of the National Gender Policy and the Family Policy.

Uganda is a signatory to several regional and global level commitments on gender equality and equity, advancement of women’s rights, and gender justice. Notwithstanding these commitments, there is insufficient commitment – often due to a duality of factors including insufficient resources and the persistence of harmful social norms – to ensure effective implementation of existing legal and policy frameworks. Inequality and poverty in the country have had a severe impact on women and girls with an increased burden of care and economic dependency. The gender gap in various socio-economic and political aspects is evident through the data and statistics despite significant progress towards a more equitable and gender-responsive society.

The Project will work towards incremental change in Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices in WEE and care work interventions. The project also provides linkage with the IDRC-supported GrOW projects to harness synergies, amplify impact, and drive concrete action.