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From Poverty to Power Green, Oxfam 2008 - weman

From Poverty to Power Green, Oxfam 2008 - weman

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2 POWER AND POLITICS I READ, THEREFORE I AMCurrently public and private spending in the developing worldmeets the needs of more than 500 million women for a moderncontraceptive method. These family planning services and suppliesprevent 187 million unintended pregnancies each year, avoiding60 million unplanned births and 105 million abortions. This hasmeasurable health benefits, including 2.7 million fewer infant deathsand 215,000 fewer pregnancy-related deaths, and has reduced maternalmortality worldwide by 30 per cent. 43Beyond their medical impact, family planning programmes alsohave far-reaching social, economic, and psychological benefits forwomen. Being able <strong>to</strong> control fertility enables poor women <strong>to</strong> makelife choices that are simply unavailable if they have <strong>to</strong> undergofrequent, unplanned pregnancies and then provide and care for children.If a woman can control the number of children she has, and thetiming of their births, she can make choices <strong>to</strong> balance her role as amother with other roles, spending time in paid work or communitylife, rather than relying on men <strong>to</strong> earn money and represent her.Before modern contraceptive methods became available, womenin many societies found ways <strong>to</strong> space births, such as taboos on sexwhile breast-feeding. However, even such ‘weapons of the weak’depend on women’s relative power. Based on research in India andChina, Amartya Sen established a link between women’s power andcontrol over fertility. In India, women’s education and economicindependence turn out <strong>to</strong> be the ‘best contraceptive’, leading <strong>to</strong> smallerfamily sizes, while real income per capita shows almost no impact onfamily size. Comparing India’s record with China’s no<strong>to</strong>rious ‘onechild’ policy, Sen finds that ‘coercion of the type used in China has notbeen used either in Tamil Nadu or Kerala and both have achievedmuch faster declines in fertility than China….The solution of thepopulation problem calls for more freedom, not less.’ 44STATE VERSUS PRIVATEIn guaranteeing access <strong>to</strong> decent health care, education, drinkingwater, and sanitation, there is no substitute for the state. 45 This hasbeen as true his<strong>to</strong>rically as it is <strong>to</strong>day. In the late nineteenth century,London was awash with infectious diseases, including dysentery andtyphoid. Child death rates were as high then as they are now in much47

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