Share the Care Campaign Launched

UNIFEM (part of UN Women) Caribbean office launched on Tuesday (November 16) a multimedia Share the Care campaign to highlight the importance of shared family responsibilities between fathers and mothers, men and women for child development and gender equality. The need for such a campaign was reinforced by findings from research undertaken in Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago in 2008 on "Child Suport, Gender Equality and the Administration of Justice".  That study which examined how the courts  and social services treated child support matters, highlighted the extent to which the unequal burden of care which women carried was related to poverty of households headed by single women.

The research revealed the extent to which child care is still considered the female realm of responsibility as well as a growing concern for the involvement of fathers in active care-taking whether or not such fathers shared a household with their children.

UNIFEM (part of UN Women) embarked on the campaign to promote shared parental care and particular the role of fathers and the contribution such makes to the healthy development of the children as well as the benefits of deeper meaningful involvement for parents.

One of the recommendations which arose from the research was the need to address the culture of care in the Caribbean through the promotion of fathers' participation in the care of children. The multimedia campaign which was produced carries the core message that mothers and fathers should take responsibility and share the care of children equally - giving time, love, and providing money for the children's various needs, even if the parents are no longer in a relationship.

At the media launch, key stakeholders in the fight for equal roles in parenting, Dr. Peter Weller, head of the CARIMAN network; Mrs. Roberta Clarke - Regional Programme Director, UNIFEM (part of UN Women) and Ms. Hazel Brown of the NGO Network outlined the complex issues within the child care discussions. It is hoped that the Share the Care campaign will not only help parents to rethink their roles in child care but to educate the population on  the resources available within the social arena and courts to help them resolve key disagreements.

Please click here for the remarks delivered by the UNIFEM RPD.

For further information please contact: Sharon Carter-Burke, UNIFEM

(part of UN Women) Caribbean Office - Communications Specialist at

E-mail:or 246-467-6124