Childcare services in cities: challenges and emerging solutions for women informal workers and their children

Abstract

Cities present important challenges for the extension of quality childcare services to informal workers, who make up most of the urban poor across the global South. For women, who are disproportionately responsible for childcare in their own households, access to quality childcare services allows for more time to earn an income and seek new employment. This is particularly important as women informal workers struggle to recover their earnings following the economic recession brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. For children, quality childcare services can contribute to lifelong health, educational and social development benefits. This article explores the key barriers to childcare provision for women informal workers and their children in cities, and assesses the role municipalities can play in the provision of childcare services. Access to quality childcare services in urban areas can help break the cycle of gendered and intergenerational poverty as cities recover from the pandemic.