How are Women in African Parliaments influencing health outcomes?

Abstract

This paper examines the question of how women in parliament are impacting health outcomes in African countries. One of the basic functions of parliaments is budgeting and by evaluating the impact of female parliamentarians on public expenditure on health we can determine if their impact on health outcomes comes from this fiscal responsibility of parliament. The effect of percentage of women in parliament on health expenditure in the next year was analyzed using regression analyses while controlling for GDP, HIV rate and Maternal Mortality was determined. We conclude that women in parliament influence health outcomes by increasing budgetary allocation to health.