We need better care policies. But where do we start?
Good care policies – whether they are born within a legislature or spring up from the local level – are shaped by the experiences of those who give and receive care.
“For a long time, care was seen as an individual responsibility”, says Carolina Lizama. “Today, however, we know that it is essential to the well-being of society.”
For more than two decades, Lizama has lived the realities of care work every day: caring for her two children, both diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder, and family members living with chronic illnesses. In her native Chile, she’s also a leading advocate for caregivers’ rights.
In 2023, when Chile launched its “Let’s talk about care” dialogues, Lizama was one of 12,000 people – caregivers, care receivers, civil society members, academics, and private sector partners – who contributed to the public consultation process that would lead to the country’s first ever national care policy.
Chile’s experience is proof that successful care policy can be inclusive, evidence-based, and responsive to people’s realities. The same can be said of Kenya’s pioneering efforts to address care gaps with real-world data – and Nigeria’s investments in the care economy for children’s well-being and women’s economic empowerment.
So what are care policies, how and where are they built, and why does it matter who shapes them? Learn more through these examples – and UN Women’s efforts – below.
Every experience, every story, and every voice matters. I encourage women to believe in their ability to organize, participate, and drive change. The most meaningful transformations often begin when we choose to share our experiences and turn them into collective action.
What are care policies?
Care policies are public policies, from local to national, that shape how care work is recognized, provided, supported, and shared across society.
Policy is just one pillar within a care system – that is, how societies organize care work through policies, laws, budgets, services, and infrastructure that help ensure people can both give and receive care.
UN Women promotes care policies built around the 6R framework:
- Recognize care as the foundation of thriving and gender-equal societies.
- Reduce energy-intensive unpaid domestic care work tasks through infrastructure and technology.
- Redistribute responsibilities more fairly between women and men, households and the state, families, communities, and businesses.
- Reward the millions of care workers with fair pay, social protection, and decent working conditions.
- Represent care workers and caregivers in policymaking, organizations, and decisions that affect their lives.
- Resource care systems with public financing for care policies, services and infrastructure, standards and training.
By organizing care work as a public good and not solely a private responsibility, care systems – and the policies that uphold them – make a real difference in people’s lives. This is especially true for women and girls, who carry the majority of care responsibilities, paid and unpaid.
How are care policies built – and by whom?
Care policy does not have one path of development – and in many places, it continues to evolve, shaped by governments in collaboration with caregivers, care receivers, the private sector, civil society organizations, and community partners.
Building a care system or developing a new policy is often a years-long process. It requires evidence, dialogue, coordination, and sustained commitment.
A strong care system lays the foundation for practical solutions that strengthen families, expand opportunities for women, and build more resilient economies and communities.
Of the more than 12,000 contributors to Chile’s public dialogues:
Care policy in Chile: from a caregiver’s perspective to a president’s signature
In Chile, UN Women worked alongside the Government to support the design, implementation, and documentation of the public consultation process. These consultations, in turn, informed Chile’s first National Support and Care Plan and the first National Support and Care Policy (2025–2030).
In early 2026, the Chilean president signed the historic Chile Cuida (Chile Cares) into law, establishing the right to care for others, the right to receive care, and the right to self-care.
The law provides the basis for Chile’s new National Support and Care System, which includes a nationwide network (also called Chile Cuida) that is already connecting institutions, programmes, and services to support 70,000 people who need assistance with daily activities, as well as for their caregivers. Today, the Chile Cuida network has more than 216,000 registered caregivers.
“These spaces [for public consultation] are incredibly valuable because they ensure that policies are shaped by the lived experiences of those of us who provide care every day.” – Carolina Lizama
Care policy in Nigeria: state-level policy shaped by household data – and a global alliance
In Cross River State, Nigeria, time-use surveys and a government-led technical working group – with support from UN Women – are actively informing Nigeria’s first state-level care policy.
Conducted in 2024, the time-use survey measured how individuals allocate their time across paid and unpaid work, personal care, and leisure. With 3,600 households participating, the findings were stark: Women spend five times as many hours on unpaid care work, per day, as men.
The household survey proved how important it is that care work be visible, valued, and supported – and that investing in the care economy is not only good for children’s well-being, but for women’s economic empowerment and community development.
For inclusive-care advocates – like artist and educator Hannah Bassey-Duke, who serves on the technical working group – the State’s policy development process has felt like the first time that the voices of caregivers and families are truly being heard.
Bassey-Duke’s work with children with disabilities helped her understand the overwhelming responsibilities placed on mothers. Many had to leave their jobs or businesses because affordable care services and trained professionals were limited.
“Every day”, explains Bassey-Duke, “I see mothers who are exhausted, isolated, and carrying unpaid care responsibilities with little recognition.”
To me, care policy is about more than legislation. It is about giving women the opportunity to work without sacrificing the care their children need.
Not only are State policymakers gathering evidence from households, they are gaining inspiration from stakeholders worldwide. Cross River State became the first government entity in West and Central Africa to join the Global Alliance for Care, launched by Mexico’s National Institute of Women and UN Women. The Alliance includes more than 350 members: governments, private sector partners, and academic, civil-society, and international organizations.
Care policy in Kenya: where data is helping to close infrastructure gaps
Kenya recently launched its first National Care Policy following public dialogues and new data – including a time-use survey supported by UN Women.
The Government also invested in a National Care Needs Assessment, which identified critical gaps in care services and infrastructure – gaps that, once filled, will directly improve the daily lives of women and families and create jobs.
One such infrastructure gap is access to clean water. Individual households could spend hours fetching water for daily drinking, cooking, and cleaning – a responsibility overwhelming shouldered by women and girls. As part of its care agenda, the Laikipia County Government has distributed more than 50,000 water tanks to significantly reduce the time and intensity needed for this care-work task.
In West Pokot County, a gap in care services is being addressed with the construction of a new childcare centre within Bendera market. A lack of childcare options will no longer be a barrier for market vendors.
The impact of the National Care Policy – drafted with UN Women’s direct support – is already becoming visible through these simple but innovative local solutions.
Why does it matter who shapes care policies?
There is no one-size-fits-all approach for building and implementing care policies. Every government follows its own path, shaped by its history, priorities, and the people driving change.
Every day, millions of women work tirelessly to sustain their families and communities. They manage households, gather food, water, and fuel, care for children and relatives, and provide emotional support. This unpaid work translates to less time to seek education, make an income, or even participate in public life and leisure.
Policymaking that accounts for their experiences – through time-use surveys, needs assessments, public dialogues, and drawing on the 6R framework – is what makes for effective and inclusive care systems.
Care work keeps the world running
From the moment we wake up to the time we sleep, care work – paid and unpaid – shapes our lives, economies, and communities. Without care work, societies would simply stop functioning.
