Gendered Impacts of Sovereign Debt, Structural Adjustment, and Privatized Social Services

African Journal of Gender and Women Studies | Vol. 11, No. 10, October 2026 | pp. 99–112

DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001322

Article Type: Research Article

Title: Gendered Impacts of Sovereign Debt, Structural Adjustment, and Privatized Social Services

Names of Author: Makena Njoroge¹ & Lorenzo Bianchi²

Author's Affiliation: ¹School of Economics, University of Nairobi, Nairobi, Kenya; ²Department of Economics and Management, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.

Abstract:
Escalating sovereign debt repayments across low- and middle-income countries have revived creditor-mandated austerity measures, including public sector wage freezes, subsidy removals, and the privatization of healthcare and water utilities. Feminist economists have long demonstrated that macroeconomic adjustment policies are never gender-neutral; when public infrastructure contracts, women absorb the resulting deficit through intensified unpaid care work and precarious informal employment. Furthermore, user fees for privatized essential services disproportionately exclude low-income women and girls. This paper analyzes the gendered socio-economic consequences of recent debt restructuring agreements in Kenya and Zambia between 2020 and 2025. Utilizing feminist macroeconomic modeling and household expenditure data alongside community focus groups, we illustrate how debt-driven fiscal consolidation erodes gender equality gains and advocate for human-rights-based debt cancellation and progressive wealth taxation.

Keywords: Sovereign debt, feminist macroeconomics, austerity, privatization, unpaid care work, social services, Kenya, Zambia

Manuscript Timeline: Received: August 20, 2026; Revised: September 20, 2026; Accepted: September 24, 2026; Published: October 15, 2026.

Citation: Njoroge, M., & Bianchi, L. (2026). Gendered Impacts of Sovereign Debt, Structural Adjustment, and Privatized Social Services. African Journal of Gender and Women Studies, 11(10), 99–112. DOI: 10.46882/2026/AJGWS/001322

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