Abstract:
A wide and established body of research evidence
has consistently shown how the effective provision of social
protection benefits and the promotion of gender equality are
among the key tools for addressing shocks, vulnerability and
poverty. It is largely to this end that these ideals implicitly
feature throughout the United Nations 2030 Sustainable
Development Agenda and explicitly in two Sustainable
Development Goals (SDGs). The first is SDG 1 on poverty
reduction, target 1.3 of which calls for the implementation of
nationally appropriate social protection systems, measures
and floors for all. The second is SDG 5, which aims to
achieve gender equality and empowerment for all women and girls. Despite this, women across the world continue to
receive contributory social security benefits that are notably
lower than those of men. There is, therefore, a need for a
critical and deeper understanding of policy, legislative and
programmatic factors that underlie gender gaps in social
protection provision. To contribute to knowledge in this
regard, and while not aiming to address the intractable
challenge of labour market formalization, this article draws
on qualitative data from case studies conducted in 2022
among informal economy and other traditionally
unprotected workers in three countries in sub-Saharan Africa
(Mozambique, United Republic of Tanzania, and Togo), the
region with the highest proportion of informal workers. The
aim was to explore the extent to which these workers, who
are predominantly women, have access to the various elements
of maternity protection. The results showed the extent to
which explicit legislative and policy frameworks as well as
knowledge and service context often limit women’s access to
maternity protection. The article draws on the key findings to
provide strategic recommendations for designing and
effectively implementing more gender-responsive social
protection benefits in developing economy contexts.
