Africa/Global: Moving beyond the public: the challenge of women's political organising in the time of AIDS

This article, from Development Update, asks why, despite our knowledge of women’s vulnerability, little has been done to overcome the social and political determinants of HIV infection in women. The authors argue that the failure of governments and international agencies to adequately address the issues of gender and HIV is due to an over-emphasis on developing technical solutions, rather than underlying social factors. Moreover, they highlight the failure of the women’s movement of Southern Africa to contest gender inequality in private spaces. This movement has focused on the needs of the middle class and has not dealt with issues of poverty and sexuality that concern poor and working class women.