Time for Legal Reform to Reap the Gender Dividend
Photo courtesy of World Vision
Sri Lanka stands at a crossroads in its journey towards gender equality. From the halls of parliament to the climate affected fields of rural women farmers, from the rising dangers of technology facilitated violence to the quiet invisibility of unpaid care work, the lives of women are deeply intertwined with the broader political, social and economic fabric of the nation. These are not isolated issues. Around the world debates on gender and law, gender and politics, gender and climate change, gender and technology and the burdens of unpaid labour are shaping the futures of societies. In a global economy increasingly reliant on innovation and inclusivity, the exclusion of women from equal opportunity is not only unjust, it is economically and socially unsustainable.
For a small country like Sri Lanka, unlocking the full potential of gender equality is not a matter of choice but of survival and progress.
The reality is layered with contradictions. On one hand, girls outperform boys in education, maternal and child health indicators are commendably strong and progressive laws exist on paper. On the other hand, the barriers that hold women back remain deeply entrenched. Women continue to face harassment in politics, violence in their homes, restrictions on labour rights and discriminatory personal laws that undermine their autonomy. When nearly 80% of homicides are femicides and when women even those elected to parliament face harassment, it becomes painfully clear that laws alone cannot guarantee dignity or safety. The persistence of these issues has direct consequences for development. A nation cannot hope to grow if half of its people are denied the freedom to contribute fully to society.
Resolving these challenges requires both immediate reforms and long term structural changes. First, Sri Lanka must re-examine outdated labour laws such as restrictions on night work for women, which were originally introduced for protection but now serve as barriers to economic participation. With stronger policing, workplace protections and institutional accountability, women should be trusted to make choices about their own safety and work schedules. Second, unpaid care work, which as research has shown makes up nearly 36% of the country’s GDP, must be formally recognised and integrated into national accounts. This step would not only give visibility to women’s contributions but also drive policies around affordable childcare, eldercare and flexible work arrangements. Third, climate policies must become gender responsive, acknowledging that women often bear the brunt of climate vulnerabilities whether through agriculture, displacement or health risks. Finally, political participation needs urgent reform. With less than 20% of elected officeholders being women, the decision making process remains overwhelmingly male dominated, leaving women’s concerns underrepresented in governance.
At an UNFPA event in Colombo to present research findings on necessary policy changes to unlock the gender dividend, the urgency of these issues was brought into sharp focus. Four landmark reports were presented, providing critical evidence and policy recommendations to address persistent gender inequalities and emerging challenges. The discussions spanned a wide spectrum ranging from women’s political participation and discriminatory laws, to unpaid care work, climate vulnerability and the gendered dimensions of technology and violence. The event was a space where policy met lived realities and where numbers and research collided with the everyday struggles of women across Sri Lanka.
“What we’ve done today is present evidence around issues affecting women’s employment, empowerment and wellness. The focus is on how we can support Sri Lanka to reap the gender dividend. Half of the population of Sri Lanka is women and girls, yet their contribution to society is not fully optimised. Many women are not in the labour force. Although Sri Lanka provides access to education for women, opportunities in the workplace remain unequal,” said UNFPA Representative in Sri Lanka, Kunle Adeniyi.
UNFPA, with a wide range of partners, has carried out five key studies. One examined violence, including technology facilitated violence, and how it affected women. Another looked at valuing unpaid care work. The third discussed how climate vulnerabilities disproportionately impacted women since climate change had a gendered effect and did not affect everyone equally. Women’s political participation was also highlighted – less than 20% of office holders are women yet their role was crucial for development. The final study addressed laws, policies and practices noting that some existed on paper but were not effectively implemented.
The paradox of the gender landscape was that while education had opened doors, the doors led to workplaces that remained unequal. Laws existed but rarely transformed into lived realities for women. Violence persisted despite decades of activism. While Sri Lanka prided itself on strong social indicators, the lack of implementation ensured that women’s empowerment remained unfinished business.
“Have you ever thought about how significant women’s hidden contribution to the economy really is? In fact, it is vast yet invisible. Unpaid care and domestic work, which contributes nearly 36% of GDP, remains unrecognised in official statistics with the majority of this contribution coming from women,” said Professor Lakshman Dissanayake.
By ignoring unpaid work, the nation blinded itself to one of its largest engines of growth. The solution lay in integrating unpaid care into national accounts, expanding affordable childcare and eldercare, promoting flexible work arrangements and investing in supportive infrastructure. These reforms would not only reduce gender inequity but also strengthen the entire economy, Professor Dissanayake pointed out.
Bimali Amarasekara presented research on the barriers to women’s political participation. Despite decades of activism, Sri Lanka continued to rank low on global indices of women’s political representation. Her research revealed how entrenched cultural attitudes, institutional biases and systemic discrimination kept women out of political spaces. Even when women stepped into the arena, harassment was commonplace proof that the system resisted their presence at every turn. The cost was more than personal, it was national. Without women at the decision making table, policies remained blind to half the population.
Manori Weeratunga, another research member, emphasised that political exclusion was not simply about numbers but about power. Women’s voices remained peripheral in shaping laws, budgets and development priorities. This exclusion created a cycle where young women saw politics as unsafe, unwelcoming and hostile, leading to lower participation and continued male dominance. Breaking this cycle required structural change from quotas and mentorship programmes to stronger protections against harassment.
“Inequality is not just a women’s issue. When compared to her male counterpart, a woman may face restrictions on her right to consent to marriage or to inherit property on equal footing. These are not just outdated sections in some law book; they are living barriers that continue to limit thousands of women in Sri Lanka under certain personal laws. And this is not only a women’s issue. Discriminatory laws and practices affect men, women, girls, boys and every marginalised group, including LGBTQIA+ persons. It is an economic, social and democratic issue. When half of the population is held back by barriers in the law, the entire country pays the price,” said researcher Malsirini de Silva.
She called for an authenticated body to drive gender responsive law reform to ensure that every woman, girl, boy and marginalised person stood equal before the law. “When that happens, the benefits will extend far beyond women; it will strengthen the whole country. Equal laws build an equal Sri Lanka. Equal opportunities uplift all of us. And the time for reform is not tomorrow, not later – it is now.”
The participants at the event called for practical steps from reforming discriminatory laws to recognising unpaid work to dismantling systemic barriers in politics and ensuring that climate adaptation and technology governance consider women’s realities. Above all, they demanded urgency. Progress has been too slow, too hesitant and too fragmented. If Sri Lanka was to reap the gender dividend, the time for half measures was over.
