The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare not only inequalities between and within countries, but the fragility of rights which many assume cannot be reversed. Gender norms, which reflect and mirror progress in gendered human rights, have regressed in many settings. Women without adequate childcare are juggling domestic work with full time jobs, they have faced greater job losses – in part because they make up a large chunk of the informal sector – and they have taken the brunt of COVID-19 as frontline workers in the health sector.
We know from previous crises that large scale shocks can have significant impacts on gendered inequalities, while they also, sometimes, present opportunities to ‘build back better’. The challenge will be bringing this learning to the response.
