How countries strive to move beyond GDP and capture the value of invisible work

The document argues that GDP fails to account for the 'care economy'—essential unpaid work primarily performed by women—and advocates for a cohesive, integrated system of indicators to measure these contributions. It highlights that women perform over 16 billion hours of unpaid care daily and suggests that current alternative metrics often still overlook these vital societal contributions.

• GDP as a primary prosperity indicator overlooks the 'care economy,' which includes essential tasks such as volunteering, community engagement, and household activities, most of which are performed by women.
• It is estimated that women provide more than 16 billion hours of unpaid care work every day, encompassing activities such as cleaning, cooking, and caring for children, the elderly, or the sick.
• While time-use surveys are established tools for capturing care activities, there is a need to move toward a cohesive, integrated measurement system rather than relying on isolated tools.

APA

(CIPPEC),, L. B. D. (. C. S. (2026). How countries strive to move beyond GDP and capture the value of invisible work. International Institute for Sustainable Development. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/measure-of-care-economy-beyond-gdp

Chicago

(CIPPEC),, Livia Bizikova,Vanesa D’Alessandre (CIPPEC),Florencia Caro Sachetti. How countries strive to move beyond GDP and capture the value of invisible work. International Institute for Sustainable Development, 2026. https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/measure-of-care-economy-beyond-gdp.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=(CIPPEC), |first1=Livia Bizikova,Vanesa D’Alessandre (CIPPEC),Florencia Caro Sachetti |title=How countries strive to move beyond GDP and capture the value of invisible work |publisher=International Institute for Sustainable Development |date=4 March 2026 |url=https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/measure-of-care-economy-beyond-gdp |access-date=17 August 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{cippec2026how, author = {(CIPPEC),, Livia Bizikova,Vanesa D’Alessandre (CIPPEC),Florencia Caro Sachetti}, title = {{How countries strive to move beyond GDP and capture the value of invisible work}}, institution = {International Institute for Sustainable Development}, year = {2026}, month = mar, url = {https://www.iisd.org/publications/report/measure-of-care-economy-beyond-gdp}, urldate = {2026-08-17}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }