The COVID-19 pandemic has been an unprecedented public health and humanitarian crisis, marked by forced lockdowns, social distancing, and consequent loss of livelihoods. Informal women workers and their children have been hardest hit by the current situation. It has increased the care burden of the women workers and adversely affected the health, nutrition, and development of their young children.
This report presents the discussions at a webinar held by the Child Care Campaign, India on September 15, 2021. The webinar had two main objectives: 1) to highlight the impact of the absence of childcare facilities during the COVID-19 crisis on the workers’ lives and that of their young children, and 2) to put forth key demands relating to the childcare needs of informal women workers.