The role of social capital in women's sexual and reproductive health and rights in humanitarian settings
- Publication Type:
- Thesis
- Issue Date:
- 2025
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Humanitarian crises, including conflicts and natural disasters, significantly impact millions of people each year, with women being disproportionately affected in terms of sexual and reproductive health outcomes and access to services. While advancements, such as the introduction of the Minimum Initial Service Package for sexual and reproductive health in crises, have improved sexual and reproductive health services, challenges remain in meeting the needs of women and girls in crisis settings. Social capital, which refers to the resources embedded in social networks, is critical in influencing health outcomes, including sexual and reproductive health. However, there is a notable gap in understanding the role of social capital in women’s sexual and reproductive health in crisis settings, particularly in the Pacific region, which faces high vulnerability to climate-related disasters and significant sexual and reproductive health and rights challenges.
This thesis presents qualitative research exploring the impact of social capital on shaping women's access to sexual and reproductive health services and information during humanitarian crises in Fiji. A systematic literature review was first conducted to investigate existing studies in the research area. Following this, in the first research phase, a scoping review was conducted to map out how social capital was included in relevant policy and guidance documentation. In the second phase, field research captured the voices of Fijian women and community leaders affected by tropical cyclones, and professionals involved in emergency sexual and reproductive health responses in Fiji. The final research phase facilitated reflection and feedback on the emerging findings with Fijian NGO, INGO and UN agency professionals.
The findings reveal that social capital significantly influences Fijian women’s access to sexual and reproductive health services and information in crisis settings through three primary pathways of socio-cultural norms and values, trust and social support. These pathways depend on formal and informal networks and nodes, which primarily draw on bonding and linking capital. Social capital has the potential to both facilitate and hinder women’s access to sexual and reproductive health and information in humanitarian settings. The findings have important implications for practitioners and policy makers in the sector. These include harnessing the opportunities presented by natural disasters such as cyclones for systemic strengthening through linking capital, the need for ongoing engagement with socio-cultural norms in preparedness efforts and the importance of localisation, especially at the ultra-local level, in humanitarian sexual and reproductive health service delivery.
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