Women in health leadership and decision-making positions are key to ensuring that diverse perspectives and ideas influence policies and goals, resulting in a better and more equitable foundation for the health systems that serve us all. The benefits of female leadership are especially evident in healthcare, where studies have shown that the presence of female health leadership is positively correlated with increased healthcare use and improved health outcomes. However, there is a pervasive gender gap in leadership in the healthcare sector. 

It is in this context that LEAD at Krea University worked on a health stakeholder analysis in partnership with WomenLift. The study aimed to understand the barriers and opportunities existing within the institutional landscape in India for enabling women’s leadership in health.

The study involved a landscape analysis, secondary data review, and key informant interviews with 40 men and women leaders and executive-level representatives of health organisations from across seven stakeholder categories in India. The stakeholder categories identified were as follows: international non-governmental organisations (INGOs), local NGOs, government institutions, universities, private sector entities, philanthropy organisations, and multilateral organisations.