Challenging role of women during disasters: A case of covid-19

The study was an attempt assesses the role of women during COVID 19 lockdown. From the findings it has been established that when disasters happen, existing inequalities for women and girls and discrimination intensify. Working women who were operating from home have proved to be in a dilemma of balancing work, mother and wife duties under the same roof. Their reproductive and community linked duties remained critical despite the evolution of the covid-19 pandemic. The informal sector has been hard hit as the majority of the middle as well as lower classes of people sorely rely on it for survival. It was exaggerated by the imposed lockdown condition in order to curb the spread of coronavirus. People were not allowed to go to work, go to the markets, cross borders and or visit the malls or entering town if not among the ‘essential service providers’. Female commercial sex workers’ tools of their trade as well as their clients were usually found in the public spaces but the rules of the game made a spontaneous turn making them more vulnerable to risky way of business. There is notable increase in domestic violence as social interaction hours in the home have increased which was alien to most working couples. As a result women have suffered the most.