Feminist economist Jayati Gosh proposes an alternative economic approach to economic recovery and transformation, in light of lessons learned from the pandemic and previous crises.
Jayati Gosh / IPS Journal
Feminist economists have long argued that the purpose of an economy is to support the survival and flourishing of life, in all its forms. This may seem obvious, but it turns on its head the prevailing view, which implicitly assumes the opposite causation: the economy runs according to its own laws, which must be respected by mere human actors. In this market-fundamentalist perspective, it is a potential angry god who can deliver prosperity or devastation and must be placated through all sorts of measures — including sacrifices made in its name.
Yet the economy, its markets, and its various institutional forms are human creations, which can also be revised and reshaped according to democratic will. That means economic policies can and should be aligned with social and environmental goals.
This used to be seen as a rather wishful, even eccentric, view. But the pandemic and the emergent threats posed by climate change and other ecological destruction have given it more resonance. Even so, the basic idea can seem a bit woolly and unstructured — full of good intent rather than practical strategies for implementation.
Care work and the environment are not limetless
Now UN Women has produced a Feminist Plan for Sustainability and Social Justice, which puts much-needed flesh on the bare bones of a feminist approach to the economy, relevant to the contemporary world. It not only rehearses the well-known problems with how economies are functioning but provides clear guidelines for policy, at local, national, and international levels. It is based on the goal of ensuring sustainable livelihoods for all, while enabling the equitable flowering of human potential in harmony with nature.
Once it is accepted that economic policies must be put at the service of sustainability, gender equality, and social justice, what follows? First, unpaid care work and the environment cannot be treated — as they effectively have been all this time — as limitless resources, which can be used for free and depleted without cost or consequence.
Instead, economic institutions and policies must not only recognise the contributions of care work and nature, but be directed towards socially valuing them and providing the conditions in which they will flourish. A priority of economic policy then becomes creation of decent jobs in strategic green sectors, such as care, agroecology, and decentralised renewable energy.
Investing in care is absolutely essential, without treating it as a commodity, personal choice or family obligation. Rather, care work must be seen as a collective good to be adequately resourced and regulated, with expansion of affordable, quality care services which provide decent work to such workers. Social and financial support to unpaid caregivers must also be increased, including through paid family leave and universal child allowances.
Rebuilding the system
The institutions, regulations and policies that provide essential protection for labour, including collective-bargaining rights, living wages, decent working conditions, and social protection, have to be strengthened, and the structures and systems made more gender-sensitive and responsive. Workers’ rights in the informal economy are particularly important, as women proliferate as small-scale farmers, domestic workers, home-based industrial outworkers, waste pickers, petty retail traders, and food vendors. The expansion of gender-responsive social-protection systems has the macroeconomic advantage of boosting demand, even as it enables greater social resilience against future shocks — including those caused by the escalating environmental crisis.
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