Globally, as of 2023, only 45% of women were employed, compared to 68% of men (International Labour Organization 2023). Gender gaps in employment are even starker in the Middle East and North Africa. In Egypt, as of 2022, while 66% of men were employed, only 13% of women were employed (CAPMAS 2022). Women in Egypt have even lower rates of employment when they marry and form families (Krafft, Assaad, and Keo 2022; Selwaness and Krafft 2021; Assaad, Krafft, and Selwaness 2022). A randomized controlled trial in low-income areas of Greater Cairo, Egypt, tested whether helping women with young children with care-giving and finding jobs could increase their employment. The experiment randomized 25% and 75% child-care subsidies (vouchers, subsequently raised to 100% subsidies) for registered NGO nurseries. The experiment also cross-randomized employment services to help women find and apply for jobs. While only 11% of the women were working at baseline, among the non-employed, 40% wanted to work, and 46% of the women wanting to work reported child care as the primary barrier to employment.
