‘Walk the talk’ on women’s rights and HIV and Aids

New report urges donors and governments to act to protect women and girls from Aids

30 November, New Delhi: Women and girls in the developing world are disproportionately affected by HIV and Aids because they face systemic and persistent discrimination, claims a new report from ActionAid and VSO. The report calls on donors and national governments to fund programmes that reduce women and girl’s vulnerability to Aids as a matter of urgency.

‘Walking the talk: Putting women's rights at the heart of the HIV and Aids response’ argues that governments and international donors too often ignore the vital steps needed to turn the tide for women in the fight against HIV and Aids. In India and other developing countries the crisis is acute.

Nearly 40 percent of those now contacting the HIV virus are women, including housewives. In rural India less than half of women have heard of Aids let alone how to protect themselves from HIV infection.

“In the past few years, there has been a growing ‘feminisation’ of the epidemic in India. Government and donors must do more to focus on the needs of women and girls. They are among those at greatest risk. Status quo is not an option if we are to tackle this dangerous trend" says Christy Abraham who leads ActionAid’s work on HIV/AIDS in India.

Legal and economic inequalities and limited access to health and education services only deepen the crisis. Prevention methods frequently ignore the violence and lack of control many women experience around sex. Culturally, women face significant barriers in getting support if HIV positive, while the burden they bear as care-providers often leaves them in poverty.

“For too long, donors and governments in the developing world have failed to confront the discrimination that increases women’s vulnerability to HIV and Aids,” Dede Amanor-Wilks, ActionAid’s Director for West and Central Africa says.

“Practical steps to tackle patriarchy and the injustices that women suffer will stop Aids from devastating the developing world, yet the response has largely ignored this,” adds Dede.

Nina O’Farrell, VSO senior policy advisor and co-author of the report said that women’s rights must be championed if the target of ‘universal access to prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010’ for those infected and affected by HIV and Aids is to be achieved.

Calling on governments and donors to commit to a female-friendly response she said: “Moving from recognition of the feminisation of HIV and AIDS to action is a major challenge. To date this challenge has been met by devastating inaction. The time has come to walk the talk on women’s rights. Leadership, political commitment and resources must be dedicated for this cause.”

 “Women can not be treated as passive victims in the response against HIV and Aids but must be acknowledged as rights holders, activists and vital agents of change.”

Donors continue to fund prevention programmes that do not reflect the realities faced by women. Some disproportionately focus on abstinence and fidelity, which fails to recognise that some married women lack the power to make their husbands use condoms and reinforces stigma and discrimination for those living with HIV.

Too little money is spent on the development of female-centred prevention methods such as microbicides and female condoms. Research shows that 2.5 million HIV infections might be prevented if just 20% of women in poorer countries could regularly use a microbicide.

Even though women are slightly more likely than men to receive Aids drugs, they are less likely to continue taking them. Many sacrifice medicines to their partners whilst others fear stigma, violence and abandonment if drugs are found. Often, they also do not have access to the right diet needed to enable the drugs to work properly, particularly in poor rural areas.

Failing health systems mean women overwhelmingly shoulder the burden of providing care and support to people living with HIV and Aids in their families and communities.  Girls frequently drop out of school to care for sick parents, whilst women lose employment opportunities and carry the huge psychological and financial burden of caring for the sick and dying without training, recognition or financial support.

The report calls for donors to increase support and funding for care and support services to relieve this unsustainable burden on women and girls.

ENDS

Notes to Editors