Covid could endanger progress on gender equality, says Merkel

In a video statement for International Women's Day, the German chancellor said women were disproportionately affected

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The German chancellor, Angela Merkel, has warned that the Covid-19 pandemic could endanger progress made on gender equality, as women take on the lion's share of childcare in lockdown and are more likely to work in at-risk jobs.

We have to make sure that the pandemic does not lead us to fall back into old gender patterns we thought we had overcome," Merkel said in a video message ahead of International Women's Day on Monday.