Since early 2021, UN Women has explored innovative market-driven solutions to address the care crisis illuminated during the COVID-19 pandemic. With the WEPs community expanding in the Asia-Pacific with an increasing number of SMEs, UN Women has observed an increase in businesses leveraging technology to provide care solutions. In partnership BoP Inc and Seedstars, UN Women launched the region's first-ever Care Accelerator, a 5-month programme for 13 Asia-Pacific care enterprises, taking them through a journey of business development, investment readiness support, and capacity building to become more gender-responsive businesses. Read more about the accelerator in the blog Innovating in uncertain times: How startups are shaping the care industry.
Bringing together first-hand learnings from the Accelerator, a rapid policy assessment, and entrepreneurial landscaping, UN Women’s recently published 'Think Piece: Innovations in Childcare to Advance Women's Economic Empowerment' delves into the opportunities, challenges, and actions needed to leverage entrepreneurship as an innovative means to redress the unequal care burden and promote women's economic empowerment.