Policy-makers in Asia tend to see the global recession as a mere blip in a process of continuing and dynamic economic growth. However, as this brief explores, the crisis has had a significant impact on women in many Asian countries in terms of their varied but overlapping roles as paid workers, self-employed workers, unpaid workers, members of households, and citizens with rights and individuals with needs, wants and aspirations.
According to this policy brief, the impact of the financial crisis on material and social conditions in developing Asia has already been far more severe than is suggested by aggregate output figures. Due to the high dependence of most Asian countries, the volatility of global exports has direct and indirect effects on employment. The effects of the crisis also tend to be disproportionately distributed among the population, with certain vulnerable groups, including women and girls, much worse affected than more secure or privileged sections. The author writes that gender discrimination tends to be intertwined with other forms of social and economic disparity, such that region, location, community, social category and occupation also typically determine the extent of deprivation of women and girls.
It is recommended that social protection in the Asian region be drastically revised because the reliance on the male breadwinner model in relief packages, including in unemployment benefits and cash transfers, adversely affects women. Other recommendations include recognising the special needs of women small producers and focusing on the inclusion of women in the provision of financial services, beyond micro-credit. In addition, it is crucial to recognise and address the problems of the increased unpaid work burden of women, which means promoting more universal, better financed and accountable systems of public service delivery.