HomeNet South Asia Trust

HomeNet South Asia Trust HomeNet South Asia is a regional network of home-based worker organisations spread across eight countries in South Asia. Charity

It represents 1,200,000 worker voices, of which 95% are women.

24/08/2026

What makes home-based work meaningful? The answer can look very different depending on where you stand.

For some, it is the ability to work around the responsibilities of home. For others, it is having an income of their own and the ability to meet everyday needs. And for some, it is the opportunity to create work for other women and grow together.

At our Advisory Board Meeting, we asked three home-based workers from the SABAH network a simple question: What is the best thing about being a home-based worker?

Their answers point to something much bigger than the work itself. Home-based work can create space for women to balance paid work with unpaid care, make and control their own income, and build livelihoods that extend beyond themselves.

These are some of the often-unseen ways that economic opportunity can shape everyday lives, not just through income, but through greater choice, confidence, and connection.

Hear directly from Binita, Gul Jabeen, and Asanthika as they share what home-based work means to them.

What does meaningful work look like to you?

In a sunlit corner of her home, a home-based worker sorts and binds dried grass stalks into brooms, stalk by stalk, bund...
21/08/2026

In a sunlit corner of her home, a home-based worker sorts and binds dried grass stalks into brooms, stalk by stalk, bundle by bundle. She selects the right length, gathers enough stems, and ties them tightly so each broom can withstand months of daily use.

She does this work from a small 150-square-foot room that is also her home. Between making brooms, she cooks, cleans, and cares for her family. During heat waves, the room can become unbearably hot, while monsoon rains can seep through the roof.

For many women across South Asia, home-based work is not a choice. Care responsibilities, mobility restrictions, limited skills, and a lack of other opportunities leave them with few alternatives. Much of this work is seasonal, informal, and poorly paid, with women often earning as little as ₹7–12 for each broom they make.

Millions of women like her keep their families and communities going through work that remains largely invisible. Recognising their work, ensuring fair wages, and expanding access to social protection can help create a future with greater dignity, security, and opportunity.

18/08/2026

At our Advisory Board Meeting two months ago, HNSA Board Member Phuntshok Chhoden joined a panel reflecting on progress for home-based workers across South Asia. Different countries have taken important steps toward recognition, rights, and protection:

Bangladesh: Ratification of ILO Convention 177
Pakistan: Legislation recognizing and protecting home-based workers
Across the region: Organizing, advocacy, research, and engagement with governments

These experiences offer valuable lessons for advancing the rights of home-based workers across the region.

Watch the full video here: https://youtu.be/mhV6755AXno

For over 25 years, HomeNet South Asia has worked alongside home-based workers and the organisations that represent them....
12/08/2026

For over 25 years, HomeNet South Asia has worked alongside home-based workers and the organisations that represent them. We have been building a regional network that has grown through decades of organising, advocacy, and collective action.

We also regularly capture our activities and outputs. We report on the workers organised, trainings conducted, policies influenced, markets accessed, and initiatives delivered. But numbers of activities alone do not tell the full story.

We wanted to ask a bigger question: what difference has all this work made?

To understand the impact built over the years, we reached out to affiliates across our network with detailed questionnaires. We asked them to share what has changed for home-based workers from 2020-2026. This data snapshot brings together findings from the last five years, drawing from 28% of our network.

The numbers offer a glimpse into what decades of collective work have added up to. They show greater access to markets, stronger economic empowerment, improved protection, and increased leadership among home-based workers.

More than a collection of numbers, this is a snapshot of the strength of the HNSA network and the change that becomes possible when organisations work together, year after year, across South Asia.

As part of our South Asia Regional Learning Platform (SARLP), HNSA organized a cross-border exposure visit, where home-b...
07/08/2026

As part of our South Asia Regional Learning Platform (SARLP), HNSA organized a cross-border exposure visit, where home-based workers from India's SAVE NGO Tirupur, SEWA, and Iasew Iasew joined home-based workers from Nepal's WHR Nepal, Saathi, and Sabah Nepal for a week of shared learning, exchange, and solidarity.

The delegation visited communities and initiatives across Nepal, exchanging ideas, experiences, and best practices on strengthening livelihoods, organizing home-based workers, and building collective resilience.

Highlights of the visit included:
•⁠ ⁠Meeting with Mr. Raj Ghimire, Chairperson of Ward No. 3, Godawari Municipality, to learn about local governance and community-led development initiatives. We are grateful to Mr. Ghimire, who reaffirmed the local government's commitment to strengthening their livelihoods and recognition.
•⁠ ⁠⁠Visiting a climate-smart, Korean technology-based farming initiative in Sunakothi to explore sustainable agricultural practices and livelihood opportunities.
•⁠ ⁠Engaging with home-based workers from WHR, SAATHI, and SABAH Nepal, learning from their experiences and sharing insights from India.
•⁠ ⁠⁠Enjoying delicious traditional Nepali cuisine hosted by SABAH Nepal, celebrating the warmth, hospitality, and rich cultural heritage that brought everyone together.

These exchanges strengthened regional partnerships and reaffirmed that when home-based workers learn from one another, they build a stronger, more connected movement across South Asia.

03/08/2026

Over the past weeks, we have shared moments from our 10th Advisory Board Meeting in Kathmandu, from powerful discussions and inspiring speakers to the launch of new knowledge resources, the work of home-based workers, and the collective voices shaping our movement.

This montage brings those moments together. As we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the Kathmandu Declaration, we are reminded that the progress we see today has been built through decades of organizing, collaboration, and the leadership of home-based workers across South Asia.

While the meeting has come to a close, the conversations and commitments it strengthened continue. Together, we move forward with a shared vision of securing recognition, rights, social protection, and decent work for all home-based workers.

Thank you to everyone who made this gathering possible and to everyone who continues to build this movement every day.

SABAH Bhutan
Sabah Nepal
SABAH Pakistan
Iasew Iasew
SEWA
Homenet Pakistan
SAVE NGO Tirupur
Labour at Informal Economy -LIE
Unnayan Sangha
HBWWF
Maldives Authentic Crafts Cooperative Society
Home Based Worker Concerned Society Nepal
Janathakshan
HomeNet International
LEARN Mahila Kamgaar Sanghatana
Coalition for the Urban Poor

31/07/2026

Highlights from our Regional Coordinator, Dr. Janvi G. Kanakia, sharing HNSA's vision and the direction of our regional network.

At HNSA, we believe that meaningful change begins with listening, learning, and working together.

As we continue to strengthen our regional network, we are committed to advancing participatory action-oriented research that is grounded in community voices, informed by lived experiences, and translated into meaningful action.

Our direction is rooted in open and valued partnerships across our members and stakeholders, where collaboration, shared learning, and mutual respect drive sustainable impact.

Together, we are building a network that not only generates knowledge but also transforms it into action, fostering healthier and more resilient communities.

Starting in August, HNSA is organising a 7-session online AI training for participants from our network affiliates acros...
30/07/2026

Starting in August, HNSA is organising a 7-session online AI training for participants from our network affiliates across South Asia. The program is built to help member organizations spend less time on repetitive tasks and more time on the work that matters.

The training will be delivered in partnership with 10x Impact Labs. Over five months, participants from our network will build practical skills in using AI for grant and proposal writing, funding research, MEL, donor reporting, and communications, supported by real NGO case studies and practical demonstrations.

There's also a dedicated Ask an Expert session, so participants can bring their organization-specific challenges to the table.

The end goal here is to help home-based workers and their representative organizations use AI tools effectively and responsibly, so it frees up more time for them to do more of what they already do best.

Across South Asia, millions of women contribute to households, communities, and economies through home-based work. Yet b...
23/07/2026

Across South Asia, millions of women contribute to households, communities, and economies through home-based work. Yet because their workplace is also their home, they experience multiple forms of violence that often goes unseen, unrecognised, and unaddressed.

Violence for them can mean delayed wages, intimidation, harassment, humiliation, or abuse within the very spaces where they are meant to feel safe.

Multiple studies by HNSA have highlighted how the overlap between home and workplace creates unique vulnerabilities for women Home-Based Workers (HBWs) in South Asia. It reinforces the urgent need to recognise violence against HBWs as both a labour rights and human rights issue.

For years, HomeNet South Asia has been working alongside its affiliates to prevent and respond to violence against women Home-Based Workers through regional research, awareness initiatives, capacity-building training programs, practical resource manuals, and advocacy.

Because every woman deserves to work with dignity, safety, and respect.

Link to full report:
https://hnsatrust.org/resource/violence-against-home-based-workers-south-asia

During our Advisory Board Meeting in Kathmandu on 30 June, HomeNet South Asia officially launched the 12 Key Facts About...
22/07/2026

During our Advisory Board Meeting in Kathmandu on 30 June, HomeNet South Asia officially launched the 12 Key Facts About Home-Based Workers in South Asia—developed in collaboration with Women in Informal Employment: Globalizing and Organizing - WIEGO.

Building on the earlier 10 Key Facts, this updated edition expands to 12 key facts, incorporating new insights into the working hours of women home-based workers and the importance of organizing them, alongside updated regional data and stronger policy recommendations.

The publication offers a snapshot of the realities faced by home-based workers across South Asia, making their contributions more visible while highlighting the urgent need for recognition, decent work, and social protection.

We extend our sincere gratitude to Firoza Mehrotra from HomeNet South Asia and Shalini Sinha from WIEGO for leading the development of this publication, and to Sristi Joshi Malla of HomeNet South Asia for its thoughtful design. We also thank everyone whose expertise and collaboration made this important resource possible.

A special thanks to chhantel_alina for designing the icon featured on the first slide.

Find the full 12 Key Facts here:
https://hnsatrust.org/resource/12-key-facts-about-home-based-workers

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