'Tax incentives will promote technology use to reduce unpaid care work'

KAMPALA - The gender ministry has called for tax incentives and increased investment in affordable technologies to reduce unpaid care and domestic work, saying such interventions are critical to improving women’s economic participation and productivity.

Speaking during the Annual Research Symposium on Unpaid Care and Domestic Work organised by the Uganda Women’s Network (UWONET) in Kampala city on May 19, 2026, ministry commissioner Dr Angela Nakafeero said many technologies that could ease the burden of domestic work remain too expensive for ordinary Ugandans.

The symposium held at Four Points by Sheraton Kampala in Kololo attracted participants from government, Parliament, civil society organisations, development partners and diplomatic missions.

“There are those appropriate technologies which can be more or less affordable, but the majority of the technology required in terms of reducing unpaid care work is very, very expensive,” Nakafeero said.

She explained that unpaid care work, including childcare, cooking, cleaning, collecting water and caring for family members, continues to disproportionately affect women and girls, limiting their ability to fully engage in business and income-generating activities.

Nakafeero argued that government intervention is necessary to make labour-saving technologies accessible to households and institutions.

“So, allowing technology to come in at affordable prices could include reducing the taxes on technology required for ordinary Ugandans, but also investing in research for us as a country to come up with appropriate technology,” she said.

She also noted that Uganda already has several innovations developed through local research institutions that could support women if adequately promoted and commercialised.

“You don’t know how much technology is available that has been generated by NARO as an institution in agricultural development,” Nakafeero told New Vision in a post-event interview.

Nakafeero welcomed the recently amended Employment Act for recognising domestic work as legitimate labour, saying it was an important step towards improving the rights and welfare of domestic workers.

“We still have an issue in terms of having a basic salary. That’s a decision that the Government of Uganda has to take, but the mere fact that our laws and policies now recognise domestic work, for me, is a very good development,” she said.

She added that employers also have a responsibility to ensure fair treatment and remuneration for domestic workers.

“So it’s between me and you, who are employing domestic workers, to be realistic in terms of how we cater for their rights and how we remunerate them. And this discussion and advocacy around unpaid care and support work is in the right direction,” Nakafeero added.

The discussions emerged from research findings presented by UWONET under the theme “An Analysis of Economic Government Programmes for Responsiveness to the Care Economy.”

Susan Achieng, the coordinator for women’s rights and access to justice at UWONET, said the research assessed how government economic programmes are responding to unpaid care and domestic work, which often prevents women from participating fully in economic activities.

Dr Angela Nakafeero

According to Achieng, many women struggle to balance entrepreneurship with unpaid domestic responsibilities such as childcare, cooking and household management.

However, the study found that programmes such as the Parish Development Model (PDM) are beginning to positively impact women’s economic inclusion.

“The Parish Development Model was found to be very successful because of the quota of 30% that is provided to women so that they can have resources for economic empowerment,” Achieng said.

The research, conducted between 2023 and 2025 in Kampala Metropolitan’s Nakawa Division and Gulu City, found that more women are now accessing financial resources for enterprise development and household support.

Some women who benefited from government financing reportedly hired farm workers and domestic helpers, reducing the burden of unpaid care work and creating more time for productive engagement.

Others invested in labour-saving technologies such as ox ploughs and solar dryers that simplified agricultural work and improved productivity.

The symposium also highlighted broader government investments in safe water access, childcare support and education services as important interventions in reducing unpaid care work.

“When water is closer to households, then the domestic work, which is predominantly done by women and girls, becomes much easier,” Achieng explained.

Researchers also observed that some harmful social norms still discourage women’s economic participation and can sometimes lead to domestic conflict or gender-based violence when women gain financial independence.

However, programmes such as the GROW Project are helping communities and men appreciate the importance of women’s participation in entrepreneurship and economic development.

The study recommended that government programmes continue integrating care-sensitive approaches during policy design and implementation to ensure women can fully benefit from economic opportunities.

Participants also called for sustained investments in caregiving infrastructure, education, water access and supportive tax policies to strengthen women’s economic inclusion.
Francis Odokorach, the country director of Oxfam, emphasised the importance of research and policy discussions on unpaid care work.

“Care work sustains families. It sustains communities and economies. When I travel and see how many people are leaving Uganda to go and work abroad, the majority of whom are young girls and women, most of the work they are going to do relates to care work,” Odokorach said.

Other organisations that participated in the symposium included the Platform for Labour Action, which presented findings from a national study on employment in Uganda’s domestic work sector.

The International Centre for Research on Women (ICRW) also led discussions on marginalised women’s experiences regarding social protection, while the Uganda Water and Sanitation Network (UWASNET) unveiled findings on sexual corruption in access to water, sanitation and hygiene services.

Among the notable attendees were former Workers Member of Parliament Agnes Kunihira and legislator Flavia Kabahenda, as well as UWOBET's executive director Rita Aciro.