It Is the Economy We Built Everything Else On
The global conversation is beginning to catch up with something that has always been true in practice but rarely acknowledged in structure. The systems that hold societies together — the raising of children, the care of families, the maintenance of health, the organisation of daily life — are not peripheral to the economy. They are the conditions that allow any economy to function at all. Without them, participation collapses. Without them, growth is unsustainable.
A recent paper from the World Economic Forum makes this explicit. The care economy, it argues, is not only expanding rapidly but is also fundamentally under-recognised, under-resourced and structurally undervalued. The demand for care is increasing across every region, driven by population growth, ageing demographics and changing workforce patterns. Yet the systems designed to support that demand remain fragmented, underfunded and heavily reliant on unpaid labour.
The dominant narrative has long treated care as a social good rather than an economic one. It is framed as something necessary, but not productive in the same way as industry, technology or infrastructure. This distinction has shaped how resources are allocated. Investment flows toward sectors that are easily measured and directly monetised, while care remains positioned as a cost rather than a driver of value.
This framing is no longer tenable. The data now shows that care is not only essential to social stability but also to economic performance. The Forum’s analysis highlights that close to two billion people globally are engaged in full-time care work without pay, representing an estimated 9% of global GDP. In some regions, the contribution is even higher. These figures do not describe a marginal sector. They describe a core system operating without formal recognition.
The implications of this are practical and immediate. When care is not structurally supported, the people providing it absorb the cost. This affects their ability to participate in the workforce, to build economic stability and to sustain their own wellbeing. The burden is not evenly distributed. Globally, women perform significantly more unpaid care work than men, often balancing this alongside paid employment or being excluded from it altogether as a result.
This is not simply an issue of fairness. It is a question of system design. Economies that rely on unpaid care are effectively externalising a core cost. They function in the short term, but they do so by drawing on labour that is not accounted for, not compensated and not stabilised.
The Creative Women’s Association frames this through a different lens. Cultural work — including care, teaching, making and the transmission of knowledge — is not separate from the economy. It is part of the infrastructure that allows economic activity to occur. The issue is not that this work lacks value. It is that systems have not been designed to measure and support it consistently.
This is where the concept of the care economy intersects directly with Cultural Work Theory. If culture is understood as the system through which knowledge, behaviour and participation are organised, then care is one of its primary mechanisms. It is how societies reproduce themselves. It is how capability is developed. It is how continuity is maintained.
The World Economic Forum paper points to a shift already underway. Governments are beginning to recognise care as an economic priority, expanding policy frameworks to include access to childcare, elder care and health services as part of national growth strategies. Businesses are also responding, introducing care-related benefits to retain and attract workers in increasingly competitive labour markets.
These developments signal an important change in perspective. Care is no longer being viewed solely as a social obligation. It is being understood as a driver of productivity, participation and long-term economic stability. Investment in care systems has measurable returns. The Forum notes that allocating just 2% of GDP to care infrastructure could generate significant employment growth, outperforming comparable investments in other sectors.
This is not surprising when considered structurally. When care systems are accessible and reliable, more people are able to participate in the workforce. Skills can be developed. Economic activity increases. At the same time, health outcomes improve and long-term costs associated with crisis intervention are reduced.
The gap, however, remains significant. Care systems are still largely fragmented, with responsibilities split across government, private sector and community organisations. Coordination is limited, and the burden continues to fall heavily on individuals. The Forum’s analysis emphasises the need for collaboration across these sectors to build systems that are accessible, sustainable and equitable.
This is where the conversation moves from recognition to implementation. Acknowledging the importance of care is not enough. It must be embedded within systems that can support it consistently over time. This includes not only funding and policy frameworks, but also mechanisms for recognising the work itself as a form of economic participation.
The Creative Women’s Association is working within this space by developing infrastructure that allows cultural and care-based work to be measured, recognised and integrated into broader economic systems. This includes certification pathways, workforce registries and participation models designed to make this work legible and supported.
The shift required is not conceptual. It is structural. It involves moving from a model that assumes care will be provided regardless of conditions, to one that actively supports the people and systems responsible for delivering it.
This is where the future of the economy is being shaped. Not only in technology or industry, but in how societies organise the work that sustains daily life. The care economy is not a separate sector waiting to be integrated. It is already embedded within every aspect of economic activity.
The question is whether systems will continue to rely on it without recognition, or begin to align with it as a core component of how economies function.
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