Over the past two decades, feminist economists have achieved significant policy advances at the national level, including the introduction of gender-responsive budgets and increased investment in care infrastructure. However, efforts to integrate gender considerations within the global financial system have progressed slowly. International financial institutions continue to implement policies that rely heavily on women’s unpaid labor without adequately recognizing or accounting for it.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Annual Meetings held this month in Bangkok provide a critical opportunity for policymakers to accelerate reforms aimed at centering gender within global financial governance. A key development is the inaugural cycle of the newly established Borrowers’ Platform, designed to enable developing countries to share knowledge, exchange experiences, and coordinate positions in debt negotiations.

This platform is especially relevant for African nations, where per capita expenditures on interest payments average $70—exceeding spending on education ($60) and health ($39). Sovereign debt restructuring measures, often accompanied by austerity, typically result in cuts to public services that disproportionately impact women, who absorb much of the resulting burden. For example, in Kenya, women devote on average 3 hours and 37 minutes more per day than men to unpaid domestic and care work, highlighting the significant gender disparity in social reproduction.

Parallel negotiations aimed at establishing a United Nations Framework Convention on International Tax Cooperation could help curb capital flight—which drains approximately $88.6 billion annually from African economies—much of it through tax evasion. The outcome of these talks will influence the resources African governments have available to invest in clinics, schools, and water infrastructure, as opposed to relying on unpaid or underpaid labor—primarily by women and girls—to sustain essential services.

Despite progress, women’s rights and gender equality often become casualties during times of economic strain. Donor governments have cut foreign aid budgets, leading to the shelving of feminist foreign policies. The UN is currently considering merging UN Women and the UN Population Fund to improve efficiency, a prospect critics argue comes at a time when their distinct roles are most critical.

Experts argue that global economic governance can be redesigned through a feminist lens. They urge UN tax negotiators to prioritize where social reproduction occurs, not just multinationals’ headquarters, when allocating resources. Additionally, the IMF’s debt restructuring frameworks should incorporate assessments not only of creditor repayment capacity but also of the consequent impact on public services and women’s unpaid labor.

Measuring and valuing social reproduction is crucial to these reforms. In 2021, Kenya’s National Bureau of Statistics found that women accounted for 25.8 billion hours of unpaid domestic and care work—roughly 23.1 percent of the country’s gross domestic product. This data has informed Kenya’s national care policy, which seeks to integrate care planning into both national and county budgets. Similarly, Mauritius implemented a fiscal policy in 2025 exempting infant food and staple vegetables from value-added tax (VAT) as a recognition of care needs.

Advocates suggest the IMF could enhance visibility of social reproduction at the global level by incorporating national household satellite accounts into its Article IV consultations, which are regular economic assessments of member countries.

African countries continue to lead these efforts, challenging the prevailing financial orthodoxy. The late economist Thandika Mkandawire noted that African governments have never lacked policy ideas but have often been constrained by externally imposed loan conditions. The African Union’s Common African Position on Debt, adopted in February, embodies a comprehensive approach calling for a binding UN Framework Convention on Sovereign Debt to create transparent, debtor-inclusive restructuring processes that balance creditor interests.

While the Borrowers’ Platform remains a voluntary coordination mechanism rather than a formal negotiating body, proponents emphasize the importance of leveraging it to advocate for the principles outlined in the Common African Position during this year’s IMF and World Bank meetings.