Question to the Department for International Development:

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the reasons for the incidence of exposure to and infection by ebola among women.

There is significant potential for women and girls to be more at risk as victims of the outbreak. Women are the primary health care providers for their families and communities, form the bulk of healthcare workers in hospitals as nurses and cleaners, and are often responsible for handling female bodies for burial which brings them into direct contact with the disease. In addition, given that pregnant women are more likely to have contact with health services, they experience greater exposure to infections in health facilities.