Women in all societies face challenges to realize their right to health. This is often closely related to their social and economic status. Women cannot access a hospital, because they cannot afford the user fees. Discrimination of women in the family does not allow them to visit a doctor. Health insurance can only be obtained with permission of a male guardian; if he refuses the woman has no access.

These are but a few examples. Many women do not see or know the connection between what is happening to them and their daily life, and what should be happening according to the human rights obligations taken up by their governments. This gap is explored by the Health Rights of Women Assessment Instrument, in short HeRWAI.

HeRWAI assesses the impact of policies on women’s health and rights by comparing what is actually happening to what should happen according to the government’s human rights commitments.