Women: Higher in population, lower in economic contribution

Country’s system deny them sufficient opportunities for gainful economic activities 

By Huzefa Aliasger and Oneli Nonis 

Sri Lanka is a country with 52 percent of the population being women. Yet, do they contribute proportionately to economic development? The answer is no. The reason is that they are not given equal economic opportunities.   
Likewise, they continue to suffer from domestic violence warranting new approaches by the authorities concerned to deal with the matter.   
Raising awareness on ongoing gender disparity and wellbeing of women in Sri Lanka organized by United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya said that the law related to domestic violence has been there for many years but not been implemented properly. She said that old approaches to these issues will not lead to growth.   
Prime Minister Harini Amarasuriya took part in the policy and research forum titled Unlocking the Gender Dividend: Driving Policy Change Through Knowledge, organized by the United Nations Population Fund in Sri Lanka on August 27 at the Galle Face Hotel. 
The event featured various experts presenting their research on gender based discrimination in Sri Lanka.   
The prime minister said that the government should value and treat women’s unpaid services as the UNFPA claims that unpaid work by women in Sri Lanka nearly contributes to a significant portion in the GDP.  
Gender disparity and issues addressed by the UNFPA 
The UNFPA also said that the unpaid work by women peaks at 40 percent of peak labor income in their 20s, which says that women give more through unpaid work than they receive in income.   
Besides, 66 percent of women in Sri Lanka report witnessing online harassment which include blackmailing and obscene content. 54 percent of women experience offline harm often in offices which lead to reputational damages and 45 percent of women fear that the online safety act of 2024 could suppress freedom of expression.
Addressing the barriers to women in political participation in Sri Lanka the UNFPA says that the majority of the population in Sri Lanka is women, but less than 10 percent of parliament seats are held by women, ranking Sri Lanka at 135 as far women parliamentary representation is concerned, the World Economic Forum.  
Women are also victims of the economic crisis. Over 2.4 million women currently are active borrowers from microfinance institutions at predatory interest rates due to the economic crisis increasing women’s unpaid care.  
Laws related to employment and commercial activities also place hurdles for women to be involved in gainful economic projects, according to the UNFPA  
Solutions proposed by the UNFPA and experts
A nationwide gender-responsive climate adaptation program should be established, combining targeted climate finance, women’s land and credit access, and social protection.   
This means channeling resources to the most vulnerable districts, legally expanding women’s land ownership rights, offering low-interest credit and livelihood support for women in high-risk sectors, and integrating women’s voices into local climate governance.  
By reducing structural inequalities while enhancing resilience, Sri Lanka can protect both its people and its future development. Recognizing the hidden value of women’s unpaid care and domestic work is essential to building a fairer and more resilient economy.   
Traditional labour force metrics ignore this invisible contribution, leaving women’s role in sustaining households and communities undervalued.   
By incorporating unpaid care into national accounting systems through time-use surveys and the NTTA methodology, policymakers can better understand the real drivers of the economy.   
At the same time, creating decent and flexible work opportunities for women, alongside safe transportation and workplaces, can boost women’s participation in the formal economy.  
Investing in care infrastructure—such as affordable childcare and eldercare—can ease women’s disproportionate care burdens, ensuring they are not forced to choose between earning an income and caregiving.   
Together, these changes highlight the importance of recognizing and redistributing care responsibilities to achieve both gender equity and inclusive economic growth.  
The government should adopt a National Care Economy Strategy that formally integrates unpaid care into economic planning, expands decent and flexible work opportunities for women, and funds community-based childcare and eldercare centers.   
This would not only improve women’s economic participation but also strengthen families and the overall economy, creating a more equitable foundation for long-term development.  
Sri Lanka should implement a Comprehensive Gender Equality Reform Package that combines legal, regulatory, and institutional changes. This means amending the Constitution to explicitly prohibit gender-based discrimination, repealing discriminatory provisions in marriage, employment, and reproductive laws, and enacting protections against technology-facilitated gender-based violence.  
On the regulatory front, abolishing restrictions on women’s work hours, removing the Family Background Report requirement for migrant workers, and ensuring easier access to reproductive healthcare are essential. 
Institutionally, operationalizing the National Commission on Women with strong legal authority, building consensus at the grassroots level, and conducting gender-sensitization for state actors can ensure reforms are not only passed but enforced.   
Such a holistic approach would dismantle systemic inequality, protect marginalized groups, and create a stronger foundation for an inclusive and democratic Sri Lanka.