Working Paper
Unpacking Women’s Health in Public-Private Partnerships

A Return to Instrumentalism in Development Policy and Practice?

There has been a significant increase in funding for health programmes in development over the last two decades, partly due to the formation of public-private partnerships. This paper examines the impact of public-private partnerships from the perspective of women’s health, and asks whether the current culture of funding has led to an increased instrumentalism in women’s health programming, and what effects this has on how women’s health is addressed at the level of practice. The paper is based on research carried out with UK-based non-governmental organizations, and its conclusions raise further challenges for improving women’s health policies and programmes in development.