The consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic are already far-reaching, but experts say there may be an unexpected casualty - gender equality.
The women's right's movement could be pushed back as far as a decade, according to the director of a youth charity, following a survey revealing how much young women are shouldering domestic tasks throughout various lockdowns over the past year.
Run by Theirworld, the survey revealed girls and women in the UK aged between 14 and 24 are having less time to focus on their education as they're instead focusing on cooking and cleaning.
According to the results published in The Guardian, 66 percent of the females surveyed said they're spending more time cooking for their families, compared with 31 percent of boys and men in the same age group.
The survey of 1000 young men and women also showed females are spending "more time cleaning (69 percent compared with 58 percent of boys and men), shopping (52 percent, compared with 49 percent), and looking after siblings (28 percent compared with 16 percent)".
Chairwoman of Theirworld Sarah Brown told The Guardian it's "a stark reminder that the fight for gender equality is ongoing".
"There are reports that women's equality could be pushed back by up to 10 years by the pandemic."
The recent results follow similar reports in September last year, when UN Women Deputy Executive Director Anita Bhatia said "everything we worked for, that has taken 25 years, could be lost in a year".
According to the New York Times, Bhatia said employment and education opportunities could be lost, posing a "real risk of reverting to 1950s gender stereotypes".
