Exploring the Gender Dimensions of Unpaid Care Work in the Lao People’s Democratic Republic

Women take on five times more unpaid domestic and care work than men do in Lao PDR, which limits their opportunities to learn, earn, travel, rest, and expand their life choices. Many struggle to balance the demands of unpaid work alongside earning an income and face being caught in an intergenerational cycle of poverty. The brief explores changes in the extent and nature of unpaid work in the country as well as the key gender issues, and outlines policy actions to boost gender equality.