in addition they serve to ensure that groupspecific interests are represented and advanced in public policy and other decisionmaking arenas for example womens voice is important in decisions over public spending priorities to ensure adequate provision of services infrastructure and social security to guarantee their physical integrity and reproductive rights the provision of better services for women enhances their power and agency within their intimate relations by reducing their dependence on other household members and giving them a stronger fallback position in case of conflicts or relationship breakdown women in decisionmaking positions must be able to articulate and act on issues that concern different groups of women especially those who are disadvantaged