Abstract

The gender dividend is a potential opportunity for economic growth due to an increase in women’s participation in the labor market; however, non-remunerated work can be a barrier to increase women’s labor force participation. In order to analyze the relationship between non-remunerated production and the potential gender dividend, this article analyzes time use age profiles, and the non-remunerated production and consumption in Costa Rica. Furthermore, the study estimates a potential unmet demand of childcare. The paper uses the methods developed by the international network National Transfer Accounts. The main results of the study confirm that women are the responsible for household work, while men on average specialize in the labor market. The results show that there is not more co-responsibility between men and women of younger generations. The materialization of the gender dividend depends heavily on public policies that seek to reduce women’s household workload and increase quality jobs opportunities.

Keywords :  National Transfer Accounts; gender; household production; time use; childcare; Costa Rica.