Conditional cash transfers, empowerment and female autonomy: care and paid work in the Bolsa Família programme, Brazil

Abstract

PurposeThis study addresses the importance of paid work for the autonomy of poor women in the Bolsa Família Programme (BFP), Brazil. The aim of this study is to consider the influence that BFP may have on women seeking paid work, by comparing the situation and the perceptions of women who receive Bolsa Família (BF) with those of women who fall within this same profile but are not included in the programme.Design/methodology/approachThe aim of this study is to consider the influence that BFP may have on women seeking paid work, by comparing the situation and the perceptions of women who receive Bolsa Família (BF) with those of women who fall within this same profile but are not included in the programme. Data were produced from a case study, using a non-probability sample and structured individual interviews in a large city in the south of Brazil.FindingsCCTs designed in the moulds of the BFP, despite its relevance for alleviating poverty, do not have the potential to empower women or for their autonomy, since they do not contribute towards tackling the barriers resulting from the interaction between paid and unpaid labour, and gender determinants in this interaction.Research limitations/implicationsThe methodology adopted, with content analysis, allows the collection of the research group participants’ experiences and perceptions, considering the specific nature of the material and symbolic context investigated. However, it does not allow for broad generalizations on the relation between CCT programmes and these women`s paid labour. Within the limits of the inferences produced by the content analysis, this study does enable the theories of ‘laziness’ as a risk resulting from social assistance to be dispelled.Originality/valueGiven these findings, the paper reiterates the importance of taking a critical view of the family when drafting development policies.