Very few women board members from low-income countries in global health companies: Report

The participation of women from low- and middle-income countries  in the boards of companies that promote health or influence global health policies, according to a new report released April1, 2022. 

The Global Health 50 / 50 Gender and Health Index 2022 assessed the policy and practices of 200 organisations around the world. Only 17 of the 2,000 board members in companies studied were women from low-income countries, according to the index.

The index is a “barometer of institutional performance around gender and governance”. It was launched by Global Health 50/50 (GH5050), an independent initiative that tracks and works for gender equality in the global health sector. 

The report noted: 

Women from low- and middle-income countries make up 42 per cent of the global population yet are notably underrepresented in global health decision-making spaces, holding 9 per cent of board seats. Women from low-income countries account for just 1 per cent of board seats.

There are no women from low-income countries on for-profit boards, according to the paper. 

The sample covers organisations from 10 sectors, headquartered in 33 countries across seven regions and which employ an estimated 4.5 million people.

As many as 138 organisations were consistently reviewed by the researchers since 2018. Around 32 per cent (41/130) of board chairs were found to be women in the latest analysis. This is a notable change since 2018, when 20 per cent of the board chairs in the same sample were women, the report said. 

Around 70 per cent of these companies have not had a woman board chair in the five years that GH5050 has been assessing them, it added. 

Women need to be supported throughout their careers so that they can reach the top, said Catherine Kyobutungi, executive-director of the African Population and Health Research Center and board member of Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health. She added: 

Board invitations usually only come once you assume leadership positions in your own organisation. But there are not enough senior women and the demand on their time is high — when you approach them, they think “Oh, I’m already on five boards, and I cannot take on any more.”

“Women leaders sitting on these boards have the domino effect of dismantling gender stereotypes,” Anuradha Gupta, deputy chief executive-officer of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and also a board member of Partnership for Maternal, Newborn and Child Health. Seeing women board members in action can inspire women staff, she added. 

In Nepal, women are expected to be the sole caregivers at home, according to Minakshi Dahal, research officer at the Center for Research on Environment Health and Population Activities, Nepal. “But one of the provisions for promotion in the civil service is service in a remote area for a certain time, which is difficult for a lot of women to complete sooner resulting in inequities in promotion between women and men.” 

Young women are also held back by the lack of women mentors to guide, hear concerns and act as a role model, she added. “I think this really limits opportunities for young Nepalese women trying to succeed in national and international health spaces.”

It is time for all global health organisations to correct historical disadvantage and inequality in the boardroom – to meet their obligation of contributing to a more equitable world and to shape more diverse, inclusive and effective governing bodies for better health for all, the report said. 

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