Presenter(s):

Irene Blackberry; Lowna Gie; Femada Shamam, North-West University, South Africa

Abstract

The International Labour Organization (ILO) defines the care economy as the sum of all forms of care work, including both paid and unpaid forms. Care is required to meet the physical, psychological, and emotional needs of others. This includes direct care activities that require physical proximity, and indirect care activities that create an enabling environment for personal caregiving.

The care economy encompasses policies, regulatory frameworks, services, infrastructure, institutions, financing mechanisms, and social norms that influence and govern the provision and receipt of health care and social support throughout the life course. It is a rapidly growing sector due to increasing demand for care across all ages and abilities, and it is expected to create a significant number of jobs in the coming years.

As the global population ages, care for older adults is rising in demand and becoming increasingly complex. This complexity impacts the requirements of optimal health and care for older people to remain independent longer. Coordinating and integrating health and social care for older people requiring care can be challenging and often fragmented. The care economy involves creating a collaborative ecosystem where health care and social support sectors as well as various stakeholders work together to enhance societal well-being and economic growth. Investing in developing the economy can contribute to providing care for older persons and creating decent work in the sector.

In the first part of the workshop, Prof Irene Blackberry will present findings from her scoping review on the global care economy, highlighting its reliance on a dedicated care workforce. Ms Lowna Gie will follow with a study from a resource-deprived community in Gauteng, South Africa, where nearly all unemployed youth in the study expressed willingness to work as paid care workers for older persons. She will explore their motivations, attitudes, and the sectoral changes needed to create decent care work. Finally, Ms Femada Shamam will present a community outreach program in Durban, South Africa that employs mostly women with entry-level education to support over 100 older persons reliant on state pensions. The initiative addresses both care needs and high unemployment, offering practical insights on design, implementation, and sustainability, and serving as a potential model for other low- and middle-income countries (LMICs).

In the second part of the workshop, Prof Jaco Hoffman and Ms Moria Allan will co-facilitate a roundtable discussion with the speakers and audience to discuss the prospects and impediments of the global care economy. This roundtable discussion will cover topics such as:
• The care economy as an investment in health, and social care
• Opportunities to empower and support older people to be active participants in the care economy beyond informal caregiving
• Potential employment opportunities of unemployed individuals
• Practical projects as examples: Sir James Care Homes, Kenya, and the Power of Touch, Zimbabwe.
Notetakers will record the discussion, which will be collated after the workshop to capture the key action points.

Bio(s):

Presenter 1: Professor Irene Blackberry is the John Richards Chair and Director of the Care Economy Research Institute at La Trobe University. Professor Blackberry is a health services and implementation science researcher of complex multifactorial care. She has over 20 years of research experience across the care economy in Australia and abroad, predominantly in healthcare, aged care and informal care sectors. Her research examines access to care and models of care that are innovative, effective and sustainable, building skills in individuals and greater capacity of the whole-of-community to support people from diverse background and rural communities. Her research focuses on addressing care crisis by breaking down the siloing of care sectors. She is the leading force behind Australian’s Care Economy research including developing an industry-led research partnership program on Care Economy, establishing the Care Economy Collaborative Network and becoming the Inaugural Director of Australia’s first Care Economy Research Institute at La Trobe University. She leads a team of 140 mutidisciplinary researchers and collaborates with 100 industry partners.

Presenter 2: Ms. Lowna Gie is passionate about contributing to the well-being of older persons and their caregivers in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). After completing her MSc, she worked for approximately 15 years in the non-profit sector, with a focus on the rights and well-being of older persons. In 2021, Ms. Gie enrolled in a PhD in Social Science (Ageing and Development) at North-West University (NWU), South Africa. Her PhD research explores how the motivations and attitudes of unemployed youth considering work as paid care workers for older persons may inform understanding of the long-term care (LTC) economy in Gauteng, South Africa. Additionally, Ms. Gie works as a consultant. She has served as a project manager and researcher on NWU–Gauteng Government collaborations, including the development of the first iteration of the Gauteng LTC Economy Strategy and a study on the housing needs of older persons in the province. She has also worked as a research assistant for Project ISCA, which investigates infrastructures of care created for and by older persons in SSA.

Presenter 3: With 25 years in ageing, Ms. Femada Shamam is a social work and management professional dedicated to innovative solutions for older persons. Her career spans direct service delivery, programme design, and implementation, addressing evolving needs in resource-constrained settings. As CEO of a leading NPO, Ms. Shamam champions human capital development to meet care demands and foster leadership. Her passion lies in strength-based community approaches, harnessing underutilised resources to empower communities. Ms. Shamam has extensive experience in developing sustainable programs that blend social and economic development, particularly in South Africa, where she advocates for scalable, inclusive models to enhance the lives of older adults. Ms. Shamam is part of the Pass It On Network’s Southern African group.