Majority or 54 per cent of surveyed parents identified childcare as a major factor influencing their participation in work, according to a latest survey.
Inadequate childcare facilities adversely affect women's participation in the country's labour market. As many as 34 per cent reported decline in job performance, 18 per cent had to quit their jobs while 13 per cent declined job offers due to insufficient childcare services.
Women with children under six are more likely to be out of the workforce and 19 per cent urban women with the same age children remaining out of the labour force, the study found.
About 72 per cent of surveyed parents believe that mothers should be the primary caregivers, reflecting the deep-rooted traditional gender roles surrounding care giving responsibilities in Bangladesh.
Abu Eusuf, executive director of Research and Policy Integration for Development (RAPID), shared the findings of the study at the launching program of 'Roadmap for Childcare in Bangladesh' at a city hotel on Sunday.
The Ministry of Women and Children Affair (MoWCA) has developed a 10-year roadmap with the technical support from International Labour Organisation (ILO) to establish an accessible, affordable and quality childcare system with robust governance and regulatory framework.
RAPID provided research support in developing the roadmap.
Bangladesh is experiencing rising demand for care services, driven by industrialization, demography, climate change, and migration. And this demand poses significant potential for job creation in the care sector.
Even in the country's readymade garment (RMG) industry, where 4.0 million workers mostly women, an ETI and GIZ joint study found some 26.67 per cent of surveyed workers who left job mainly because of childcare while 11.34 per cent attributed declining in jobs thanks to childbirth.
Against this backdrop, the roadmap prepared based on the latest study recommendations for the childcare sector provides a detailed action plan to bolster the sector, aligning with the broader national development agenda.
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