ABSTRACT
The representatives of million of Third World women in Cairo hoped, while supporting the struggles of Western women for their right to abortion, at least some attention would be paid to their experience. Despite official commitments to women’s reproductive health and rights, women’s health has taken a severe beating throughout the world. Along with de-industrialisation, there has been, as a consequence of macro-economic policies, a huge increase in under-employment in the agrarian sector, particularly affecting women. Decreasing health sector spending, the so-called reforms of the health sector, accompanied by increasing subsidies to the private sector in health have had disastrous implications for the health of the people. Health care expenditure has increased sharply, and accounts as one of the leading causes of indebtedness in the country. Along with the collapse of the public health system, macro-economic policies have seriously compromised the health of women, of the poor, of Dalits and Adivasis.
