A dark blue heart with the words One Woman Can inside it

One woman. Infinite impact.

When one woman can access the resources and opportunities she deserves, she can pull not only herself, but others around her out of poverty and crisis. Join us and invest in women around the world.

Her health

Supporting women and girls to make their own decisions about their bodies and health

Around the world, many women and girls cannot access basic health care and are prevented from making decisions about their own bodies. All too often, the quality health services women and girls need are not available, or women and girls themselves cannot access them. Traditional beliefs about gender roles and challenges to women’s rights also mean women and girls’ health and well-being suffer.

When contraception is not available to them, or they’re unable to make decisions about their use, women and adolescent girls do not have control over how many children they have and when. Delivering a baby safely and having the medical support needed before, during and after remains a challenge in many parts of the world. Adolescent girls face many barriers when it comes to their sexual and reproductive health rights (SRHR). They are often prevented from seeking the services they need and are often unable to make decisions about their own health—with devastating costs.  When food is scarce, women and girls often eat last and least. Tragically, far too many women and adolescent girls die from preventable causes, leaving behind families and communities who rely on them.

The solution? Invest in women’s health.

Why invest in women’s health?

Women everywhere are leaders in their communities, delivering care and support. When we invest in women—who make up 70% of healthcare workers—healthcare systems everywhere are stronger, and everyone is happier and healthier.

When more women’s voices are heard, when they are included in decision-making spaces, and when they have the same opportunities to lead as men, everyone benefits.

When women can access sexual and reproductive health resources and services and make decisions about their use, when they can engage in communities, stay in school, and participate in the economy and when they can make decisions about their bodies and futures, everyone benefits.

When women have access to nutritious food for themselves and their families, everyone benefits.

How we’re working to keep women and girls healthy

CARE supports women and girls to make their own decisions about their bodies and health. We partner with communities so that everyone can get the care they need closer to home, including in fragile settings. We help strengthen local health systems so that services are accessible and equitable and so all women’s needs are met, and their rights are protected—particularly when it comes to delivering sexual and reproductive health services.

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SUPPORTING HEALTH CARE WORKERS

We work with community volunteers, midwives, nurses and doctors to improve nutrition, and health services and ensure healthcare providers can support women and girls’ specific health needs.

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SUPPORTING COMMUNITIES

We support communities to grow healthy food using climate-smart practices and bring people together to talk and learn about health, nutrition, women’s rights and gender equality, gender-based violence, and more.

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LOCAL PARTNERSHIP

Together with local partners—including women’s rights organizations—we seek to overcome unfair social barriers and practices that put women and girls at risk of harm or prevent from accessing health services. We support survivors of gender-based violence and address the root causes of violence against women and girls, including Child Early and Forced Marriage (CEFM).

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Advocacy

Through our advocacy work, we work with men, boys and entire communities to promote gender equality, address social norms that exclude women, and work to change harmful and discriminatory laws, policies and practices. We do all of this by engaging men and boys as champions for equality.

Projects

Impact

In fiscal year 2022, through our health projects we reached:

People reached directly

were women and girls