The Right to Care
The right to care refers to the guarantee that every person can access quality care when needed, provide care to loved ones, and avoid poverty, exclusion, or disadvantage as a result of caregiving responsibilities throughout the life course. Strengthened in recent years through debates on the global care crisis and experiences emerging from Latin America, this approach frames care not as a private burden but as a fundamental social right that should be publicly supported and protected. The right to care encompasses access to care services, support for caregivers, and the fair social distribution of care responsibilities. It recognizes care as essential to human dignity, social inclusion, and collective wellbeing.
GÜNCEL İSTATİSTİKLER
4.1
Around 4.1 billion people worldwide lack access to any form of social protection. This means billions remain without public guarantees when care needs arise.
606
Approximately 606 million women are excluded from the labor force due to unpaid care responsibilities. This highlights how care continues to be carried as a gendered and largely private responsibility.
80%
In many countries, approximately 80% of long-term care is provided by family members. This reflects the continued reliance on households rather than publicly supported care systems.
CURRENT CARE POLICIES
Care Policy Recommendations Tool
At İhtimam, we curate emerging care policy recommendations and translate them into practical guidance for different stakeholders. Select a stakeholder group and thematic area to explore relevant policy recommendations, strategies, and actions from Türkiye and around the world.
THE FUTURE OF CARE
Care Radar
The Care Radar tracks emerging developments, weak signals, and evolving conversations across the care landscape. It is designed to help us understand how care is changing and to explore these shifts through an ethical and systems-oriented lens.
Recognizing Care as a Social Right
In a growing number of countries, particularly in Latin America, care is being recognized as a distinct pillar of social protection systems. This approach argues that care should not remain a private family responsibility but should be guaranteed through public policies and institutions.
The Development of National Care Systems
Some countries are establishing comprehensive national care systems that bring together childcare, elder care, and disability support within a unified framework. While these models show promise, sustainable financing and workforce capacity remain significant challenges.
The Growing Recognition of Caregiver Rights
The rights of unpaid caregivers are gaining greater visibility in policy debates, including demands for social protection, leave entitlements, pension credits, and income support. However, support systems remain fragmented in many contexts.
A Life-Course Approach to the Right to Care
Emerging discussions increasingly frame care as a right that extends across the entire life course rather than being limited to childhood, disability, or old age. This perspective encourages more integrated and comprehensive policy design.
The Right to Receive Care, Provide Care, and Practice Self-Care
New frameworks conceptualize the right to care through three interconnected dimensions: the right to receive care, the right to provide care, and the right to self-care. This broader understanding is beginning to reshape care policy and governance.
The Gap Between Recognition and Implementation
While legal recognition of the right to care is advancing in many places, progress in funding, service provision, workforce development, and equitable access often lags behind. Closing this implementation gap is becoming a critical area for monitoring and accountability.
