Nor does it automatically lead to women's empowerment or protect them from economic dependence. To guarantee women's right to an adequate standard of living, employment policies aimed at the generation and regulation of decent work have to be accompanied by social protection and social services that provide income security and enable people to live their lives in dignity. The SPF proposes a nationally defined set of minimum guarantees, including basic income security for children, working-age adults, older people and people with disabilities, as well as basic social services for all.4 This initiative holds significant promise for women, who are over-represented among those excluded from existing social protection schemes. On the one hand, informal networks rely heavily on women's unpaid care and domestic work. On the other hand, women's own needs for support are rarely adequately acknowledged and addressed due to prevailing social norms and gender power relations. Examples abound of gender gaps in access to state-run social protection schemes and gender-biased delivery of social services.