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On the Ground
Explore our work with partners, globally and locally, to tackle social and economic injustice using a human rights lens.
Exploring the Impact of Debt, Tax Injustice and Austerity on Women’s Access to Healthcare and Social Protection
On 25 and 26 September 2025 in Accra, Ghana, we participated in the continental workshop to promote women's socio-economic rights, including in the context of extractive industries, organised by the African Commission on Human and Peoples’ Rights (ACHPR).
The workshop aimed to raise awareness among governments, NHRIs, CSOs, and other stakeholders about women’s rights to education, health (including reproductive health), social protection and fair participation in extractive industries. It sought to emphasise States’ obligations under key African human rights instruments to address gender inequalities and promote accountability through regional frameworks. The workshop also drove advocacy for ratifying and implementing the Maputo Protocol and related instruments, encouraged legal reforms and monitoring mechanisms, and highlighted the links between reproductive justice and women’s socio-economic empowerment. It also addressed challenges faced by women in extractive industries, strengthened institutional capacities to promote women’s socio-economic rights, advocated for gender-transformative policies and established a regional observatory to monitor State compliance with gender-sensitive human rights standards.
Our Programme Officer – Africa, Aya Douabou, contributed to the panel discussion on Health and Social Protection: Ensuring Universal Coverage and Addressing Vulnerabilities. Her presentation focused on 'The Status of Women’s Access to Healthcare, Particularly Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR), and Social Protection Services Across Africa.” It provided data on the gaps regarding women's access to healthcare and social protection in Africa. according to the World Health Organisation, in 2019, almost half of the women in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) did not have access to essential healthcare during pregnancy and childbirth. In 2017, SSA accounted for roughly two-thirds of all maternal deaths in the world. In 2023, sub-Saharan Africa and southern Asia accounted for around 87% (225.000) of the estimated global maternal deaths. Sub-Saharan Africa alone accounted for around 70% of maternal deaths (182.000), while southern Asia accounted for around 17% (43.000). In Africa, 827 million people have little or no social protection. Globally, over 63% of women give birth without maternity benefits, rising to 94% in sub-Saharan Africa.
Her presentation also highlighted how debt, tax injustice and austerity lead to the underfunding of public services, including in the health sector. Drawing from the findings of our upcoming multi-country study, which showcases the impact of austerity measures on Ghana and Kenya's rights to education and health, she highlighted how unfair economic policies negatively and disproportionately affect human rights, especially women’s access to quality healthcare services and social protection.
At the end of the workshop, recommendations were captured in the outcome document, and the need to prioritise the funding of socio-economic rights through progressive tax policies was underscored among others.
