Webinar: The gendered impacts of Covid-19: Women in informal work
Thursday, 6 August 2020 at 13:00 (CAT)
Join PLAAS for a webinar on “The gendered impacts of Covid-19: Women in informal work” featuring Ma Lulama (street vendor), Tema Swayimani (agricultural field officer working with smallholder farmers, Mahlathini Development Foundation) and an anonymous small-scale fish trader (together with Malebo Moepi, PhD student at PLAAS).
Women constitute the majority of people deriving livelihoods from the informal economy. Their work in the informal economy often overlaps with and is central to social reproduction. However, in spite of the importance of informal work for the welfare of the poor, it is often unrecognised and invisible to the regulatory authorities. Since most informal work falls outside the ambit of essential services, restrictive measures have severely affected the ability of women to work under Covid-19 restrictions. The loss of income, alongside food shortages and rising food prices, has contributed to food hunger and insecurity for many poor households. Thus, Covid-19 has affected women who continue to bear the burden of social reproduction. This webinar will present voices from below and highlight experiences of women engaged in small-scale farming, fisheries and street trading.
Some key questions for discussion will include:
- What have been the impacts of Covid-19 on women in the informal economy?
- In what ways have women in the informal economy been adapting to the Covid-19 crisis?
- What policy measures can be adopted to support women in the informal economy and cushion them from the adverse impacts of Covid-19?
Tune in on Thursday, 6 August 2020 at:
- 11:00 Greenwich Mean Time (GMT)
- 12:00 West Africa Time (WAT)
- 13:00 Central Africa Time (CAT)
- 14:00 East Africa Time (EAT)
Watch the webinar here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JinGWSYefbo Or click below to view it.
