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Paper short abstract:

The main goal of the project was to enlighten the role of the non-public health sector in selected African countries emphasizing on the access of women to health care.

Paper long abstract:

The project consider that women are the more sensible sector of the population to the international macro-economic decisions that lead to the development of the non-public health sector in countries dependent of external aid. The public health sector in Africa refers to a heterogeneous field of operation that comprises the action of non-profit organizations such as NGOs and associations, and profit institutions that stand from private clinics and medicine sellers to traditional therapists. This sector has been developing in West and Sub-Saharan Africa, both on the aftermath of the local governments progressive abandon of the public health programs following the directions of the Structural Adjustment Plans of the late eighties and nineties. A more detailed knowledge of health care options for women and their choices in this sector is essential for the implementation of an effective health strategy coordinating both public health planning and the heterogeneous non-public sector. The project is focused in three Lusophone countries (Guinea Bissau, Angola and Mozambique) and with a broader comparison track done in one francophone country (Niger).