COVID-19 Crisis Response and Gender Norms: A Case Study of Women’s Economic Activities in Bangladesh

Abstract

In Bangladesh, women have traditionally been assigned the role of wives and mothers in patriarchal households. Furthermore, their socio-economic activities have been restricted by the purdah norm, which prohibits women from contacting men outside of their houses. This paper aims to clarify how Bangladeshi women responded to the crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic and how their responses affected the gender norms and gender relations that had previously restricted women from economic activities, through a case study of Pabna district in northwest Bangladesh.

The economic crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic required ongoing responses over approximately three years, including subsequent inflation. As a result of responses to the economic crisis, the mutual dependency of couples based on the purdah norm, where husbands provide economic support instead of women's restricted participation in socio-economic activities, weakened. The restriction of ensuring social distancing for infection control has served as a means to promote women's economic activities. However, women's involvement in economic activities did not directly lead to improvements in gender relations that disadvantage women. Women tended to adjust their economic activities in a way that aligned with the purdah norm, thus avoiding friction in their household relations. From a longterm perspective, women have gained negotiation opportunities and tactics through their economic activities to improve the gender relations that disadvantage women within households. On the other hand, women who lost their husbands tended to engage in economic activities that deviated from the purdah norm. These women are expected to become agents of change in the long term, leading to transformation in gender structures. However, at this stage, they are placed in a vulnerable position within a patriarchal society and face socio-economic risks. Development cooperation is expected to play a crucial role in providing support to such women in technical and financial resources for their economic activities and securing socio-economic safety.