Do we need a feminist global health policy to spur women’s health innovation? Part 2: Drug drought in Women’s Health

In the realm of global health policy and research, persistent and historical gender biases continue to permeate a largely patriarchal ecosystem. These biases result in the oversight of crucial gender dimensions and disadvantage women’s health, hindering adequate investment and innovation tailored to address women’s unique and diverse health needs.
Despite growing awareness of these biases and increased efforts by civil society, academia, and the philanthropic sector (such as the White House Initiative on Women’s Health Research, and the Women’s Health Innovation Opportunity Map by NIH and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation) to spur gender responsive and inclusive research and innovation to advance women’s health, progress remains slow and fragmented.
In two sessions, we will delve into the landscape of women’s health research and development (R&D), examining the existing barriers and disparities through a gender lens. Our conversation aims to connect the dots between persistent gender biases in research and the transformative potential of a feminist global health policy (FGHP). By shining a spotlight on the barriers and obstacles in advancing women’s health R&D, we seek to explore whether a FGHP holds the potential to accelerate the discovery and enhance the accessibility of new innovations, crucial to interrupting the prevailing health inequities, particularly those that disproportionately affect women.
Part 2 ‘Drug drought in Women’s Health’ aims to discuss gaps and strengths of the women’s health R&D landscape in the last 20 year. Together with our distinguished panel of diverse stakeholders, we will discuss where the need for innovation is, and how the future of women’s health R&D looks like. In continuation with part 1, the discussion will also include valuable recommendations to spur innovation and advance women’s health in all its diversities.

The objectives of this session :

• Examine gender-related barriers and gender disparities in women’s health research and development, identifying challenges hindering innovation.
• Explore the potential impact of a Feminist Global Health Policy in accelerating the discovery and accessibility of innovative solutions to address health inequities for women.