Al Hayat newspaper published yesterday a report released by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) entitled, ‘Tackling Childcare: The Business Case for Employer-Supported Childcare’. According to the report, companies offering daycare services for their staff have noticed the positive impact this had on their work, in addition to an improved recruitment process, steady employment and an increased productivity of the employees. The IFC report indicated that the introduction of nurseries inside the workplace cuts the drop-out rates by workers. In addition, the presence of toddlers with their mothers at work reduces the latter's absence due to illness or any other emergency reasons. It also gives working mothers an incentive to focus more, be more motivated, and increase their sense of responsibility and belonging to the workplace, the IFC report said. From a women’s rights perspective, daycare facilities at the workplace improve gender-based diversity and prepare women to take on leadership positions. On the subject, Nena Stoilikovic, the vice president of Blended Finance and Partnerships at IFC, said that without the full and equal participation of women, no state, society or economy can achieve their goals, realize their potentials or face the challenges of the 21st Century. “Childcare is part of the solution, and childcare services at the workplace is a key catalyst for economic growth,” Stoilikovic noted. When parents share the workforce, they are able to increase their incomes and contribute to the growth of the companies and nations economies, she maintained. (Al Hayat, September 28, 2017)
