Introduction Researching Wartime Care Work in African Conflict Countries

This chapter outlines what this book seeks to achieve and the key themes discussed. It summarizes the contents of all seven chapters of the book and also highlight the key themes of each chapter. Unpaid care work provision during wartime and in post-conflict settings refers to the tasks that are essential for sustaining lives and the well-being of families and communities. This book is an attempt to gain a more nuanced understanding of an often-forgotten aspect of peacebuilding processes. People affected by war and displaced populations face much harder living conditions, which increases the drudgery of care work, as will be seen in the case of Darfur. As one of the recommendations, women should be compensated for providing care by acknowledging the value of their unpaid work and by guaranteeing them a leadership role in the peacebuilding process. Also, care should be recognized as central to peace processes, and care responsibilities should be redistributed among all social actors. How could this be achieved? This book sheds light on this and provides insights on possible mechanisms that can be adopted.