WHA75: New Tools to Take Action on SRHR, UHC, & Gender Equality

During next week's Seventy-fifth World Health Assembly (WHA75), in Geneva, Switzerland from 22-28 May, decision-makers from around the world will convene to decide on the World Health Organization’s leadership and vision for the future, and to discuss critical global health issues, including human resources for health and how to prepare for, and respond to, future health emergencies.

Women Deliver is engaging at WHA75 though bilateral and coalition-driven advocacy, including during key events and on social media, as well as by launching several new resources. In close partnership with gender equality advocates around the world, including from the Alliance for Gender Equality and UHC, Women Deliver will be calling on decision-makers to keep gender equality and the health and rights of girls and women, in all their intersecting identities, front and center during all aspects of this year's Assembly.

We will be closely monitoring discussions and resolutions on human resources for health (the health workforce), health emergencies and pandemic preparedness, universal health coverage (UHC), and the prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse, and sexual harassment. Women Deliver, through its Non-State Actor Status at the WHO, will also be involved in civil society statements during discussions on key agenda items.

Throughout WHA75, we hope you'll join us in calling on delegates to:

Advance gender equality in the health and care workforce: While women make up the majority of the global health workforce, they often face significant barriers at work, including a lack of decent working conditions, sexual harassment and discrimination, occupational segregation, and a gender pay gap. Resilient health systems, powered by a strong and gender-equal health and care workforce, are key to positive health outcomes and pandemic response and recovery. Decision-makers across both the public and private sector must work together to ensure women’s equitable access to leadership positions and decent work within and beyond the health and care workforce.

Ensure uninterrupted access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services during health emergencies: The COVID-19 pandemic had a detrimental impact on sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR ). During the pandemic, an estimated 12 million women may have been unable to access family planning services, resulting in as many as 1.4 million unintended pregnancies. Crucially, governments must address the gendered impacts of health emergencies and ensure uninterrupted access to quality SRH services, including those tailored to adolescents and youth. Girls and women, in all their intersecting identities, must be engaged in all stages of WHO preparedness for and response to health emergencies.

Ensure SRHR as an integral component of gender-responsive universal health coverage: Globally, the leading cause of death for girls aged 15 to 19 years is complications during pregnancy and childbirth. Upholding SRHR are essential to gender equality, realizing the right to health, and achieving UHC. Governments everywhere must commit to achieving UHC and to mainstreaming a gender perspective in health policies, including by addressing the different and changing SRH needs that people of all genders experience throughout their lives. Learn more about how you can take action to advance progress on SRHR in UHC here.

Examine intersections with climate change and take an intersectoral approach to health systems strengthening and related-policies: While climate change may not be central to the agenda at WHA75, governments and the WHO should recognize and respond to the impacts of climate change on health infrastructure and service delivery, and on the health and well-being of all people, especially girls, women, and gender-diverse individuals. Health systems have a an important role to play in adapting to and mitigating climate change, and are critical to supporting resilience.

Help us take action throughout WHA75 to advance gender equality, including by using and sharing the new resources below, joining the events Women Deliver staff, Young Leaders, and partners will participate in, and by f ollowing us on Twitter for live coverage throughout #WHA75.

Key Resources to Take Action

The Impact of COVID-19 on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights: Youth-led Perspectives and Solutions for a Gender-Equal World

The insights and perspectives of adolescents and youth are often absent from global evidence reviews. This first-of-its-kind study by Women Deliver highlights the experiences, insights, and perspectives of adolescents and youth on the gendered impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on SRHR, as well as policy recommendations, co-created by youth advocates, for stakeholders responsible for strengthening and upholding SRHR in emergency and non-emergency contexts, including pandemic response and recovery.
#CovidSRHRYouth

➔ Read the full report and executive summary in English, French, or Spanish
➔ Help spread the word on social media

Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights: Integral to Transformative and Gender-Responsive Universal Health Coverage

This factsheet by Women Deliver provides a brief overview of why SRHR must be an essential component of UHC, as well as key actions that civil society organizations can take to advance progress on SRHR in UHC within their own national contexts. The factsheet is intended to be used by gender equality, health, and SRHR advocates in order to strengthen UHC and hold governments accountable to their commitments.

➔ Check out the factsheet in English, French, or Spanish

Our Recommended WHA75 Events

The Impact of COVID-19 on SRHR: Youth-led Perspectives and Solutions for a Gender-Equal World
Wednesday, May 18 | 8:30 AM-10:00 AM ET

Join us in 30 minutes for a multi-stakeholder, intergenerational discussion on global and country-level perspectives on Women Deliver’s recent research exploring the effects of the pandemic on access to SRHR services, information, and products in low- and middle-income countries, with a particular focus on India, Kenya, and Nigeria. Led and conceptualized by youth advocates, this event will highlight the first-hand experiences, insights, and perspectives of adolescents and youth on the gendered impact of COVID-19 on SRHR.

Follow the conversation on social media throughout the event using #CovidSRHRYouth.

Open Briefing: Introduction to the 75th World Health Assembly — Charting a Path to the Triple Billion Targets in a Pandemic Era
Sunday, May 22 | 5:00 AM-6:45 AM ET

Join the Global Health Centre and the United Nations Foundation on the eve of WHA75 to preview the key issues being considered at the Assembly and to learn more about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Triple Billion targets, and diverse efforts to make progress on this program of work.

This event will be live-streamed and held in person at the Geneva Graduate Institute.

Safe and Decent Working Conditions for Women Health and Care Workers in Times of Crisis
Wednesday, May 25 | 8:00 AM-9:00 AM ET

Join Women in Global Health and the Government of France on the sidelines of WHA75 for a high-level panel discussion on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women in the health and care workforce, and particularly those in low- and middle income countries who experience a disproportionate burden of underpaid and unpaid work within and beyond the health sector.

Gender and UHC: Policy Priorities for Equitable and Resilient Health Systems
Thursday, May 26 | 12:00 PM-13:15 PM ET

Join the Alliance for Gender Equality and UHC, co-convened by Women in Global Health, SPECTRA, and Women Deliver, and co-host UHC2030 on the sidelines of WHA75, for an interactive dialogue on policy priorities for gender-responsive UHC in the context of strengthening health systems, including for health emergencies. The dialogue with governments, civil society, and the WHO will build on lessons learned to mobilize the actions needed to make health systems more responsive.

Follow the conversation on social media throughout the event using #GenderUHC.

Photo Caption: Darshana Rijal, Women Deliver Young Leader, meeting with community members to discuss child marriage and violence against women in Nepal. Photo credit: Darshana Rijal, Women Deliver Young Leader, Class of 2020.