Selangor is pursuing a blended financing model involving the public and private sectors to build a more sustainable care economy, reducing its long-term reliance on government funding.
State women empowerment and welfare committee chairman Anfaal Saari (pic) said the state needed to move beyond conventional government allocations to ensure care services remained accessible, affordable, quality-driven and sustainable.
She said unpaid care work involving children, older people and individuals with special needs was being shouldered disproportionately by women, limiting their workforce participation and career progression.
“The care economy cannot be seen merely as social welfare.
“It must be recognised as a strategic investment that supports the wider economy,” she said during the fourth series of the Selangor Care Economy roundtable discussion.
The discussion was held in conjunction with preparations for the Gender Outlook Forum on Sept 24, focused on the theme “Towards a Sustainable Financing Model to Strengthen the Care Ecosystem in Selangor”.
Anfaal said the roundtable had identified four key strategic areas – developing sustainable financing and impact investment models; creating economic opportunities while balancing supply and demand; promoting professionalism of care work and establishing an integrated platform for policy formulation.
She said a sustainable financing model was important as the state had previously allocated significant funding for initiatives such as childcare subsidies and schemes for older people.
“Among the proposals discussed was a blended funding approach combining resources from different stakeholders, as well as risk pooling, whereby various financial risks associated with providing care services could be shared.
“Care services are often perceived as low-impact work, despite their importance to the broader economy,” she added.
“If we remove the care economy from the economic pyramid, it will have an impact on other sectors of the economy.”
Anfaal added that Selangor’s care economy would be promoted through Selangor International Care Expo from Oct 15 to 17 in conjunction with Selangor International Business Summit at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre.
“The expo will allow visitors to experience and better understand care services and technologies available in Selangor.
“It will feature equipment and solutions for caring for older people and children, alongside demonstrations of how care facilities can be designed to make spaces safer and more accessible.
“Several memoranda of understanding are to be signed as part of efforts to strengthen strategic partnerships in the care sector,” added Anfaal.
