Can technology solve historical inequalities such as the distribution of domestic tasks? That was the bet of the Ministry of Equality when it presented in September 2023 ‘MeToca’, an application designed to facilitate the equitable distribution of household chores.
Promoted as a co-responsibility tool, it promised detailed graphs on the effort invested by each family member, all in search of more egalitarian homes.
The application, promoted by the Ministry of Equality then directed by Irene Montero, was released to the public after an investment of 211,750, and has now just been withdrawn.
The lack of users and the low impact achieved have led to the closure of this initiative, according to ministerial sources.
The initial purpose: distribution of tasks at home
In their presentation, the then Minister of Equality, Irene Montero, and the Secretary of State for Equality, Ángela Rodríguez Pam, pointed out that “MeToca sought to be a free and accessible tool to help families better redistribute household tasks.” The app was capable of recording who did what at home and offered visual reports about the time dedicated to each activity.
Montero defended the importance of the tool, ensuring that “feminism, when it enters our homes, makes our homes better spaces for everyone”. Pam, for her part, supported the project, citing data from the National Statistics Institute (INE), which indicates that women in Spain spend twice as many hours doing housework as men.
The application had tasks such as “accompaniment and teaching”, “arrangement of clothes”, “attendance at meetings”, “emotional care”, “changing clothes at home”, “change of season”, “buying food”, “care of pets”, “care of adults”, “care and surveillance”, “home equipment”, “washing dishes”, “household management”, “shopping”, “doing the laundry”, “gardening”; “cleaning”, “vehicle maintenance”, “miscellaneous maintenance”, “pet walking”, “ironing”, “activity planning”, “family planning”, “meal planning”, “shopping planning”, “putting on/taking off the table”, “preparing meals”, “picking up and putting away”, “home repairs” and “administrative tasks”.
High cost and minimal use
However, the initial enthusiasm did not translate into widespread use. According to data obtained by Europa Press, Until March 2024, MeToca accumulated only 11,201 downloadsa figure well below expectations. Added to this is another striking fact: only 10,956 installations were carried out on Android devices and 245 on Apple deviceswhich reveals the low penetration of the app among users.
MeToca is not currently available on major download platforms such as the App Store or Google Playconfirming its official deactivation. From the Ministry of Equality they indicated that this decision was made due to the lack of users and stated that the closure does not mean that the objective of co-responsibility in the home remains in the background.
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