Care Economy is the backbone of our economy. As we celebrate the International Day of Care today on 29th October 2024, we are delighted to share significant strides in advancing Care work in Nairobi Kenya. At the heart of our project, ‘Driving Equality: Availing Affordable and Accessible Childcare in Market Centers in Kenya,’ lies a commitment to alleviating the burden of unpaid care work that disproportionately affects female traders in Nairobi Kenya.
Despite being 80% of vendors in Nairobi, female traders are affected disproportionately due to gender inequalities that limit their economic potential and societal norms which dictate that women bear caregiving and homemaking responsibilities. Furthermore, the lack of social protection, such as paid maternity leave, and the lack of social infrastructure such as child-care facilities and lactation rooms at their workplaces exposes women to vulnerability during caregiving periods. Research indicates that Caregiving responsibilities can take up to 5 hours daily resulting in a “baby profit gap” where profitability among female-owned businesses with children is 48% lower than those without children. In partnership with the Nairobi City County Government, Wow Mom’s initiative aims at increasing access to quality and affordable childcare services through the provision of modern daycare services within market centres in Nairobi to ensure that young children receive quality care for proper growth and development enabling their caregivers particularly women to engage in more paid labour.
Recognizing the transformative potential of implementation research, Wow Mom has collaborated with Dalberg Research and BSD Group to build local evidence to scale impact through replication and policy action. The ultimate goal is to advocate for policies mandating or encouraging childcare facilities in market centers or increasing funding for these essential services. This project is supported under the scaling Care Innovation in Africa co-funded by Global Affairs Canada and the International Development Research Center (IDRC).
Since the project’s inception, we have achieved significant milestones, including the finalization of our qualitative research, stakeholder mapping, existing policy reviews, and successfully launching operational daycare services at Mwariro Market. These services provide essential support to female traders, hence generating evidence for the need for these facilities. Our efforts have gained recognition, such as the acknowledgment of the Wow Mom daycare model by the Nairobi County Governor H.E. Johnson Sakaja committing to scale the daycares across all markets in Nairobi. Additionally, the project team leader Mrs. Peninah Ndegwa, has been awarded as the Gold Winner, Humanitarian Leaders and Relief Innovators Category at the KEOnline – Online Presence Fitness Digitally Fit Awards 2024. This is a result of her distinguished impact on championing women’s and children’s inclusion in market centers.
By aligning our efforts with Nairobi’s County Integrated Development Plan (2022-2027), we demonstrate how childcare solutions can be integrated into local governance frameworks. Success in Nairobi will serve as a model for other counties in Kenya, showcasing the economic and social benefits of investing in childcare. Our journey is far from over, but the progress made thus far is a testament to the power of collective action and innovative solutions. We remain dedicated to promoting policies that empower women and strengthen communities through accessible care work.