Rethinking care in Albania: from invisible work to public priority

Care is part of everyday life. Looking after children, supporting older family members, or helping those in need. Yet in Albania, as in many countries, this work remains largely unpaid, undervalued, and shouldered mostly by women. On average, women in Albania spend more than five hours a day on unpaid care work. Men spend less than one. This means women carry over six times the burden, leaving them with less time for paid work, education, and participation in public life.

Investing in care is not only about improving services, it is also about expanding opportunities for people. When care services are available and affordable, women have more time and choice: to work, to study, and to participate fully in society. At the same time, the care sector creates jobs and contributes to economic growth.

While Albania has made progress in strengthening care services, more attention is needed to recognize care work, both paid and unpaid, and to address how it affects women and men differently. The new law on Gender Equality specifically recognizes unpaid work as a contribution to the development of the family and the society, calling on responsible institutions to adapt the rules governing the unpaid work of women and men, and to raise awareness on the equal sharing of care responsibilities between men and women.

UN Women is supporting this shift by bringing care into the center of discussions on development and public investment. Through the global Transform Care Initiative, supported by the UK and the Swedish governments, Albania is part of a regional effort across the Western Balkans to strengthen care systems and learn from other countries’ experiences.

The initiative helps turn awareness into action, by building evidence, improving data, and supporting policies that make care services more accessible and effective. It also works with institutions to strengthen their ability to plan, finance, and deliver these services.

Learning from other countries has been an important step. Policymakers from Albania recently visited Spain, where they explored how care services are organized and funded. The experience offered practical ideas on how to build systems that better support families while also creating opportunities for women to enter the workforce, and address deeply rooted gender inequalities.

Olta Caca, from the Agency for the Support of Local Self-Government, who was one of the participants in the study visit, noted that transforming the care economy starts at the local level—where municipalities, are not just service providers but architects of inclusive systems that recognize, reduce, and redistribute unpaid care work. “Local governments hold the key to making care policies real, turning national strategies into accessible services that empower women, strengthen communities, and drive economic resilience,” – said Olta Caca who holds the position of Statistics and Performance Director.

In line with the spirit of the new gender equality law, UN Women is also supporting leaders and institutions in their efforts to recognize, value and redistribute care work. Representatives from Albania joined a regional training on the care economy with peers from the Western Balkans, strengthening their knowledge and exchanging experiences. This was followed by in-country training with representatives from 17 municipalities, focusing on how local governments can better plan and deliver care services.

“The lack of care services directly affects women’s lives. Many women give up work or do not seek employment at all, which reduces their participation in the economy. It leads to fewer opportunities, more informal work, and greater economic dependency. At the same time, gender stereotypes that link care only to women and girls remain a major challenge, alongside limited awareness and insufficient budgets for care services.” - Nadire Kreka, from Municipality of Elbasan.

Civil society organizations are also part of this effort. A two-day training brought together organizations working on gender equality and social inclusion to better understand the care economy and its impact. Participants discussed how care work is shared, how it affects inequality, and what changes are needed in policies and services. The training also created space for collaboration and for identifying practical ways to strengthen advocacy and action at local and national level.

“The mission of the ‘Woman to Woman’ organization can further integrate the issue of unpaid care work of women and girls into its future projects — directly contributing to gender equality, independence, economic empowerment, and the psychosocial well-being of women and girls,” said Tonilda Çela from “Woman to Woman” organization in Shkodër.

To support decision-making, UN Women is also finalizing a cost-benefit analysis of investments in the care economy. The study looks at return of investments to expand care services, in terms of improved coverage, employment generation, fiscal space and contribution to GDP. It includes areas such as early childhood education and care, as well as services for older persons, which are becoming increasingly important in view of ageing population and demographic dynamics.

While supporting these efforts, UN Women is working closely with the rest of the UN System in the country, including by recognizing the care economy as a key element of human capital development and of the national social agenda. The EU Care Strategy and the commitment to close the gender care gap contained in the new EU gender equality strategy provide a critical opportunity as Albania advances towards EU integration.