Women’s Health

Women, Business and the Law presents pilot data on legal and supportive frameworks related to women’s sexual and reproductive health across 26 economies in Sub-Saharan Africa. Building on the Women, Business and the Law methodology, the data examine whether legal systems, government policies, and institutional measures support women’s access to sexual and reproductive health services and autonomy throughout their lives.

Advancing Women’s Health Through Evidence: Data and Insights

The data cover five areas:

  • overarching legal protections and non-discrimination in access to sexual and reproductive health services;
  • gender-based harmful practices, including female genital mutilation (FGM);
  • family planning;
  • comprehensive sexuality education (CSE); and
  • girls’ access to education, including protections for pregnant and parenting students.

The data cover both binding legal frameworks and supportive policies and institutional mechanisms, providing a broader picture of how governments support women’s health and bodily autonomy in practice. This pilot is funded by the World Bank’s Global Financing Facility and contributes to ongoing efforts to strengthen data and evidence on the legal and policy environments shaping women’s health, economic participation, and human capital outcomes in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Key Takeaways

1

Legal protections remain uneven across women’s health issues.

While many economies have adopted laws or policies addressing aspects of women’s health, comprehensive legal protections remain limited in several areas. Only about half of the 26 economies explicitly recognize the right to sexual and reproductive health in law, and very few guarantee access to services free of cost. Thirty percent of the pilot economies do not explicitly prohibit discrimination in access to these services based on sex/gender, age and marital status.

2

Harmful practices remain insufficiently addressed.

Although a majority of economies criminalize female genital mutilation (FGM), far fewer establish comprehensive accountability mechanisms, such as criminal liability for guardians, or laws on cross-border implementation of this practice, creating exploitable loopholes.

3

Ensuring girls' access to education remains a challenge.

Less than half of the economies explicitly guarantee girls' right to education during pregnancy and after childbirth or have policies to support pregnant and adolescent parenting students in attending school.

4

Legal mandates for comprehensive sexuality education in schools are severely lacking.

These gaps can affect health outcomes and future economic opportunities.

5

Supportive policies are more common than binding legal guarantees.

Most economies have adopted national sexual and reproductive health strategies and family planning guidelines, suggesting growing policy attention to women’s health. However, these supportive frameworks are not always matched by binding legal rights and protections.

6

Women’s health is closely linked to economic participation and human capital development.

Legal and policy frameworks shaping women’s health influence educational attainment, labor force participation, productivity, and intergenerational wellbeing. Strengthening women’s health protections is therefore important not only for advancing rights, but also for supporting inclusive economic growth and development.

Country profiles - coming soon

Publications

Explore related WBL publications, the flagship report, and research to deepen your understanding of how laws shape women’s economic empowerment across countries. Learn how laws and women’s economic opportunities interact across key areas, from care and jobs to violence and inclusion.

All Publications Thematic topics