Women Should Receive Pensions for Unpaid Domestic Work, Says Fayyaz

Former Maldivian Democratic Party (MDP) chairperson Fayyaz Ismail has called for women’s unpaid domestic work to be recognised economically, proposing that women who stay home to raise children should receive financial compensation or at least a pension.

Speaking during a session of the Siyaasathu workshop held in Addu City, Fayyaz said women’s contribution to raising children and maintaining households was essential to society but often went unrecognised financially.

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“Calling me a feminist would be accurate,” Fayyaz said, arguing that advancing women’s rights would benefit society as a whole, given that women make up more than half of the population.

He said women should receive additional support in certain areas to address the disadvantages they face in a historically male-dominated society. He cited the allocation of seats for women on local councils as an example, saying the measure had enabled capable women to take up leadership positions.

Fayyaz also argued that the economic value of domestic work should be recognised, proposing that either husbands or the state should compensate women for raising children and managing households.

He said women who dedicate their lives to supporting their families can face financial insecurity if their marriages end, particularly when they have not held formal employment or accumulated pension benefits.

Fayyaz described situations in which women support their husbands as they build successful businesses, only to be left without financial security if their husbands later leave them.

He said these issues required practical solutions and pledged to introduce measures to address them if he led an administration.