IV. GENERAL RECOMMENDATIONS ADOPTED BY
THE COMMITTEE ON THE ELIMINATION OF
DISCRIMINATION AGAINST WOMEN
Tenth session (1991)*
General recommendation No. 17: Measurement and quantification of the
unremunerated domestic activities of women and their recognition
in the gross national product
The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women,
Bearing in mind article 11 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of
Discrimination against Women,
Recalling paragraph 120 of the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for the Advancement
of Women,
Affirming that the measurement and quantification of the unremunerated domestic
activities of women, which contribute to development in each country, will help to reveal the de
facto economic role of women,
Convinced that such measurement and quantification offers a basis for the formulation of
further policies related to the advancement of women,
Noting the discussions of the Statistical Commission, at its twenty-first session, on the
current revision of the System of National Accounts and the development of statistics on women,
Recommends that States parties:
(a) Encourage and support research and experimental studies to measure and value the
unremunerated domestic activities of women; for example, by conducting time-use surveys as
part of their national household survey programmes and by collecting statistics disaggregated by
gender on time spent on activities both in the household and on the labour market;
(b) Take steps, in accordance with the provisions of the Convention on the Elimination
of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Nairobi Forward-looking Strategies for
the Advancement of Women, to quantify and include the unremunerated domestic activities of
women in the gross national product;
(c) Include in their reports submitted under article 18 of the Convention information on
the research and experimental studies undertaken to measure and value unremunerated domestic
activities, as well as on the progress made in the incorporation of the unremunerated domestic
activities of women in national accounts.
*
Contained in document A/46/38.