双重负担，不平等：布基纳法索城市低收入母亲的育儿挑战和工作家庭冲突

11150 Produced by the Research Support TeamAbstractThe Policy Research Working Paper Series disseminates the findings of work in progress to encourage the exchange of ideas about developmentissues. An objective of the series is to get the findings out quickly, even if the presentations are less than fully polished. The papers carry thenames of the authors and should be cited accordingly. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely thoseof the authors. They do not necessarily represent the views of the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/World Bank andits affiliated organizations, or those of the Executive Directors of the World Bank or the governments they represent.Policy Research Working Paper11150The overlapping challenges of limited economic opportu-nities, maternal responsibilities, and almost no access tochildcare services have detrimental effects on the wellbeingof women and children in Sub- Saharan Africa. In urbanareas, shifting family structures and economic constraints,combined with gender norms that cast women as primarycaregivers, leave many mothers simultaneously managingchildcare and work, often in unsafe environments. Thefindings from this ethnographic study in Ouagadougou,Burkina Faso, illustrate the physical and emotional tolls thatarise for women and children in low-income householdswhen mothers lack access to reliable childcare, leading themto work under conditions of constant caregiving demand.While home-based work is a common coping strategy, itThis paper is a product of the Gender Innovation Lab, Africa Region. It is part of a larger effort by the World Bank toprovide open access to its research and make a contribution to development policy discussions around the world. PolicyResearch Working Papers are also posted on the Web at http://www.worldbank.org/prwp. The authors may be contactedat friedsonridenour@worldbank.org. rarely eases maternal burden or ensures child safety. Theconsequences of work-family conflict are exacerbated by thedangers linked with poor quality infrastructure in low-in-come neighborhoods, by the physical burdens associatedwith available forms of work predominantly in the informaleconomy, and by the stresses induced by perpetual nego-tiations and compromises that affect caregivers’ ability tomeet subsistence needs. This study prompts critical reflec-tion on how to value investments in childcare programsby underscoring why group-based childcare may yielddisproportionate benefits for low- income families—andconversely, why these families incur especially high costsin its absence. Double Burden, Unequal Ground: Childcare Challenges and Work-Family Conflict for Low-IncomeMothers in Urban Burkina FasoFiona Gedeon Achi, Bordeaux Population Health, University of BordeauxSophia Friedson-Ridenour, Africa Gender Innovation Lab, World BankRachael S. Pierotti, Africa Gender Innovation Lab, World BankNathalie Ouangraoua, World BankAlis Bambara, Université de GenèveWe thank Sara Deschênes, Estelle Koussoubé, and Kehinde F. Ajayi for their thoughtful feedback. We aregrateful to Madeleine Wayack Pambè for intellectual guidance and to Wendpayandé Elisabeth PrincesseKafando for transcription assistance. Most importantly, we thank the childcare providers and all thestudy participants for their generous collaboration and participation, this research would not have beenpossible without them. This work was funded by the Umbrella Facility for Gender Equality multi-donortrust fund. The findings, interpretations, and conclusions expressed in this paper are entirely those ofthe authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the World Bank, its Executive Directors, or thegovernments of the countries they represent.Keywords: Gender and economic empowerment; Early childhood; Day care centers; PovertyJEL codes: J13; J22; J16; J46; I31 1.IntroductionMany women in Sub-Saharan Africa must navigate the overlapping challenges of poverty, maternalresponsibilities, and limited access to childcare services (Alarakhia et al., 2024; Bhan et al., 2020; Maltaet al., 2021). In fact, while Sub-Saharan Africa has one of the highest rates of female labor forceparticipation globally (World Bank, 2023), the vast majority of women work informally, without job andincome security and excluded from maternity leave and other forms of social protections (Alarakhia etal., 2024; Bhan et al., 2020; Malta et al., 2021). At the same time, in many contexts, entrenched gendernorms cast women as primary caregivers, which means that working mothers often shoulder themajority of daily childcare responsibilities (Cassirer & Addati, 2007; Hatch & Posel, 2018; Seedat &Rodon, 2021). But low-income households cannot rely on paid childcare services to address pressingchildcare needs. Formal childcare services—whether professional home-based or quality center-basedoptions—are largely restricted to high-income households who can afford their expensive cost (Hugheset