Elizabeth Mataka, UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa.
Credit: UNDP

If more women are to avoid HIV infection, laws on inheritance and property rights should be revisited, revised or better enforced. This was one of the key messages emerging from a high-profile side-event on women’s inheritance, land and housing rights in the context of HIV, which took place yesterday, 12 March, during the 53rd session of the Commission on the Status of Women held at UN Headquarters in New York.

The discussion brought together a range of speakers including Elizabeth Mataka, UN Special Envoy for HIV/AIDS in Africa and Rose Gawaya, Senior Gender Adviser of the UNDP HIV/AIDS Practice based in Johannesburg, South Africa. The event focused on reviewing innovative work that has been done to increase women’s access to, control over, and ownership of land and housing in a bid to mitigate the impact of AIDS. Realistic and workable strategies, from the grassroots to international level, were explored.

Ms Mataka highlighted the increased vulnerability of women due to AIDS and called on governments to harmonise often conflicting laws and legislation. She said “Lack of equal rights for women to inheritance and property excludes women from accessing resources that would help reduce their vulnerability to HIV and improve their ability to cope with the consequences of the epidemic.”

The issue of such rights for women is of critical importance in addressing HIV. When a woman’s husband dies from AIDS, she might lose her home and land, inheritance and livelihood. This can leave her in a situation where she is forced to enter into relationships and behaviours that render her more vulnerable to the virus. The panellists contended that when women have enhanced access to ownership and control of land and property rights they have a greater range of choices, are far more able to exercise autonomy and, ultimately, are better able to protect themselves.

As well as the revision or implementation of existing laws on inheritance, the panellists recommended increased access to information and legal experts, enhanced partnerships among organizations working in the area and strengthened networks to raise awareness of the issues, with a focus on grassroots women as critical drivers of change. They also suggested greater use of the media and creative ways of sharing and packaging messages, while highlighting the need to increase the scope of research.

Other participants in the panel included: Jeanmarie Fenrich, Fordham Leitner Centre for International Law and Justice; Seodi White, Women and Law in Southern Africa (Malawi); Esther Mwaura, GROOTS Kenya, Huairou Commission; and Anne Gathumbi, Open Society Initiative for East Africa, Law and Health Initiative.

This event was organized by UNDP, the Huairou Commission and Soros/OSI with support from UNAIDS, GROOTS, ICRW, COHRE, Fordham Law Leitner Center and WLSA Malawi.

Opening session of the meeting of the Commission on the Status of Women. United Nations, New York, 2 March 2009
Credit: UN Photo/Jenny Rockett

Equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including care-giving in the context of HIV is the theme of the 53rd session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) which opened today at UN Headquarters in New York.

Addressing the opening of the 53rd session, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé called for bold, collective action to achieve universal access and to achieve gender equality.

“Gender equality must become part of our DNA -- at the core of all of our actions. Together with governments and civil society, we must energize the global response to AIDS, while vigorously advancing gender equality,” said Mr Sidibé. “These causes are undeniably linked.”

Mr Sidibé highlighted three priority actions needed to make this a reality: integrated delivery of antenatal, sexual and reproductive health and HIV services; respect and protection of human rights; and new models of development in which women and men have greater control over their lives.

Caregiving and HIV

The majority of people experiencing ill health due to HIV live in low and middle-income countries and are being cared for at home, since health services may be beyond the reach of large proportions of the population. Home and community-based care takes many forms, but typically it is provided by relatives, friends, or community volunteers.

UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé (front, right) gave a keynote address at the opening.
Credit: UNAIDS

The burden of this care-giving lies disproportionably on women because of gender norms—the widely held beliefs, expectations, customs and practices within a society define ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ behaviours and roles and responsibilities.

Promoting a more equitable sharing of responsibilities between women and men is a practical necessity but alone is not enough to address the current inequalities, said Mr Sidibé.

“Women and girls need legislative and judiciary initiatives, policies and community-driven programmes. These are essential to ensure access to economic resources, social protection and safety nets, and access to education, skills training and employment.”

Fifty-third session

Equal sharing of responsibilities between women and men, including care-giving in the context of HIV is the theme of the 53rd session of the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) which opened today at UN Headquarters in New York.

Over the coming days, participants, including representatives of Member States, UN entities and ECOSOC-accredited non-governmental organizations from all regions of the world will explore the theme through a series of interactive sessions.

There will be a roundtable for high-level participants including ministers, deputy-ministers and principal secretaries to focus on experiences and lessons learned.

Technical experts will hold a panel to identify policy initiatives to accelerate the implementation of previous commitments and along with statisticians will hold another panel on capacity-building for gender mainstreaming in relation to care-giving in the context of HIV. This will provide an opportunity for an exchange of national and regional experiences and good practices.

Commission on the Status of Women

The Commission on the Status of Women is a commission of the United Nations Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) dedicated exclusively to gender equality and advancement of women. It is the principal global policy-making body. Every year, representatives of Member States gather at United Nations Headquarters in New York to evaluate progress on gender equality, identify challenges, set global standards and formulate concrete policies to promote gender equality and advancement of women worldwide. This year it runs until 13 March.

Credit: Jacky Ly

Social issues like gender inequality, violence against women and the criminalization of activities like sex work, injecting drug use and same sex intercourse are factors that can make people more vulnerable to HIV infection. To discuss the challenges of social drivers, UNAIDS Secretariat, UNESCO and the Social Change Communication Working Group held a satellite session at ICASA on Sunday 7 December.

“Programmes to address these social or “structural” factors that make people more vulnerable to HIV take time to produce results. It is urgent that they be adapted to communities’ local needs and be implemented, evaluated, and continuously improved as core parts of national AIDS strategies, operational plans and budgets,”  said Barbara de Zalduondo, UNAIDS Chief Division of programmatic priorities support.

Barbara de Zalduondo, UNAIDS Chief Division of programmatic priorities support. Credit: Jacky Ly

UNAIDS consultations in more than 120 countries in 2006 revealed that many obstacles to effective HIV programmes are down to social, legal and political reasons rather than strictly technical ones. Gender inequality and violence against women is a large factor. As is the approach of criminalization of activities such as sex work, injecting drug use and same sex intercourse. The persistence of HIV-related stigma and other violations of human rights are also obstacles.

These social challenges are not new. Although well documented for over two decades, all too often they are not addressed by concrete programmes on a large enough scale in national and sub-national responses to AIDS.

For this reason, the ICASA session brought together experts who have designed, implemented, and measured successful programmes to address gender inequality, sexual violence, HIV related stigma and discrimination and other violations of human rights in multiple African contexts. The experts illustrated programme approaches which go beyond building individual knowledge and motivation to also tackle laws, policies and social norms.

The satellite session was an opportunity for HIV programme planners and and community advocates and donors to discuss effective HIV programming.

Participants shared examples of programmes that are catalyzing and supporting change in harmful social norms, which they can consider for application or adaptation at home.

Experts also exchanged information on existing tools for measuring HIV related stigma and discrimination, gender inequitable norms, and concurrent sexual partnerships. Also, programme examples and evaluation methods and data, were shared and discussed.

The 15th International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) closes today in Dakar. Over the last few days, hundreds of African and international delegates have held discussions on HIV developments and trends in the region.

On the opening day of ICASA 2008, a new regional report is launched by UNAIDS Executive Director Dr Peter Piot that looks at the vulnerability of women and girls in Southern Africa to HIV.

Dr Peter Piot addresses the launch of the UNAIDS RST report on vulnerability of women and girls in Southern Africa.
Credit: UNAIDS/Jacky D. Ly

Almost two-thirds of all young people with HIV live in sub-Saharan Africa where about 75% of all infections among young people aged 15 to 24 years are among young women.

Responding to the need to understand why young women and girls living in countries in this region are so vulnerable to HIV infection, UNAIDS and the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit of the University of Witwatersrand in South Africa convened an expert technical meeting in June 2008.

The meeting agreed four specific sets of actions at community and country levels that are grounded in national strategies and are context specific. The four key actions are:

1. Mobilize communities for HIV prevention, with strong male involvement, to design relevant strategies and messages about the causes, consequences of and solutions to young women and girls’ vulnerability
2. Expand access to high quality, well-integrated essential sexual and reproductive health and prevention services, while mobilising demand for and use of them.
3. Develop and ensure adequate technical and financial resources for implementation of national strategies that address the structural drivers of vulnerability.
4. Strengthen country capacities for epidemiological and behavioural surveillance, priority research, and monitoring coverage and impact of prevention responses to generate information to improve decision-making.

“UNAIDS Technical Meeting on Young Women in HIV Hyper-endemic countries of Southern Africa” was launched on the opening day of ICASA 2008, Dakar.

Participants at the meeting included regional researchers; representatives of national AIDS councils, government departments and the Southern African Development Community; and members of the eastern and southern Africa United Nations Regional AIDS Team. Participants were selected for representation across high-level policy, social and scientific research and programming expertise related to women, girls and HIV, from all countries of southern Africa.

Andy Seale, Senior Regional Adviser for Advocacy and Communications with UNAIDS Regional Support team for Eastern and Southern Africa, said: “A major acceleration in social mobilization, service scale-up, increased resources and better surveillance is needed to successfully address the vulnerabilities explored at the meeting. Actions are needed at all levels from the state level to actions at community, family and individual level.”

The outcomes of that meeting are reflected in a new publication launched by UNAIDS in Eastern and Southern Africa on 1 December 2008 that outlines the experts’ conclusions, recommendations and needed sets of action.

“UNAIDS Technical Meeting on Young Women in HIV Hyper-endemic countries of Southern Africa” also includes a number of the background technical papers which were commissioned for the meeting.

Southern Africa context explored

On the opening day of ICASA 2008, a new regional report is launched that looks at the vulnerability of women and girls in Southern Africa to HIV.
Credit: UNAIDS/Jacky D. Ly

The papers explore some of the factors that are driving the current epidemic in southern Africa. These include the practice of age disparate and intergenerational sex; biological vulnerability of young women; economic empowerment; education and gender-based violence. A final paper examines the complex interaction between environmental factors and individual choices, behaviours and community norms.

Improved analyses of these factors will enable appropriate and evidence-informed responses to these specific challenges that increase vulnerability of young women and girls in the region.

Social transformation

Meeting participants called for a social movement to address the drivers that contribute to the risk of HIV infection in the region. Addressing human rights violations, harmful social norms, weak community and leadership capacities are seen as some of the fundamental steps to tackle the vulnerability of young women and girls to HIV in southern Africa.

In commemoration of this year’s World AIDS Day the UNAIDS Office Washington, in partnership with UNAIDS partners, cosponsors and local civil society organizations, is holding a week-long World AIDS Day visit for women living with HIV from India, Swaziland and the US.

The visiting participants are: Beri Hull, from the USA, who is North America representative of the International Community of Women Living with HIV and AIDS; Jahnabi Goswami from India who is general secretary, INP+ the national Network of People Living with HIV; and Thembi Nkambule of Swaziland who is national coordinator of Network of Women Living with HIV, Swaziland. All three lead education and advocacy efforts in their respective countries.

The three women hope through sharing their stories of courage, determination and selfless service to their communities they inspire leaders who will become champions on issues regarding women and AIDS.

The visit began yesterday in Washington, DC. Today a World AIDS Day luncheon commemorating the 20th Anniversary of World AIDS Day is being held at the National Press Club. Michele Moloney-Kitts, assistant coordinator, Office of the U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator and Tim Wirth, former U.S. senator and President, UN Foundation and Better World Campaign will also address this event.

On 3 December, the Global AIDS Alliance, UNAIDS, and participants will travel to Rock Hill, South Carolina for a two-day HIV awareness-raising tour, which is designed to educate and inform audiences about the role UNAIDS and the participants play in the global AIDS response. The visit will emphasize the need for effective leadership and AIDS solutions tailored to work for specific epidemics, including helping women and girls.

Cultural sensitivity is critical for the success of development strategies according to a new report produced by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Credit UNFPA

Cultural sensitivity is critical for the success of development strategies according to a new report produced by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). Reaching Common Ground: Culture, Gender and Human Rights, launched 12 November 2008, reports that culture is a central component of successful development of countries, and must be integrated into development policy and programming.

The State of World Population 2008 report affirms that development strategies that are sensitive to cultural values can reduce harmful practices against women and promote human rights, including gender equality and women’s empowerment.

Despite many declarations and affirmations in support of women’s rights, the report argues, gender inequality is widespread and deep-rooted in many cultures. Coercive power relations underlie practices such as child marriage - a leading cause of obstetric fistula and maternal death—and female genital mutilation or cutting. These and other harmful practices continue in many countries despite laws against them.

Gender inequality and HIV

The effects of gender inequality leave women and girls more at risk of exposure to HIV. Less access to education and economic opportunities results in women being more dependent on men in their relationships, and many who have no means of support must resort to bartering or selling sex to support themselves and their children. Where women can’t own property and lack legal protections, their dependence within their families is even greater. Economic and social dependence on men often limits women's power to refuse sex or to negotiate the use of condoms.

The report, which coincides with this year’s 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, is based on the concept that the international human rights framework has universal validity. Human rights express values common to all cultures and protect groups as well as individuals. The report endorses culturally sensitive approaches to the promotion of human rights, in general, and women’s rights, in particular.

Culturally sensitive approaches call for familiarity with how cultures work, and how to work with them. The report suggests that partnerships - especially with community-based institutions and leaders - can create effective strategies to promote human rights and end their abuses, such as female genital mutilation or cutting, wife inheritance or rape within marriage.

“Communities have to look at their cultural values and practices and determine whether they impede or promote the realization of human rights. Then, they can build on the positive and change the negative,” said Thoraya Ahmed Obaid, Executive Director of UNFPA

Therefore, The State of World Population report cautions that cultural sensitivity and engagement do not mean acceptance of harmful traditional practices, or a free pass for human rights abuses. Values and practices that infringe human rights can be found in all cultures. Understanding cultural realities can reveal the most effective ways to challenge these harmful cultural practices and strengthen beneficial ones.

The report concludes that analysing people’s choices in their local conditions and cultural contexts is a precondition for better development policies.

Ambassador Marie-Louise Overvad,
Permanent Representative of Denmark to
the United Nations Office and other
International Organizations in Geneva
presented the MDG3 torch to UNAIDS
Executive Director Dr Peter Piot.

UNAIDS Executive Director Dr Peter Piot received one of the MDG3 Torches on Thursday 26 June in Geneva as part of a campaign organized by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Denmark intended to ensure commitment from participants to the third Millennium Development Goal (MDG3): Promote gender equality and empower women.

The campaign, entitled The MDG3 Champion Torch: “To Do Something Extra”, was launched on 7 March 2008 in Copenhagen. In the run-up to the United Nations High-level MDG meeting, which will take place on 25 September 2008, more than 100 Torches in support of the MDG3 are to travel around the world.

Recipients of the MDG3 Torch are representatives from government, private sector, civil society, media, individuals from North and South, and international organizations. Each MDG3 Torch Bearer will commit “To Do Something Extra” in support of gender equality and women’s economic empowerment.

At the UN High-level MDG meeting the collected commitments will be presented to the United Nations Secretary-General Mr Ban Ki-Moon, who will be invited to light the last MDG3 Torch.

Dr Piot accepted the torch on behalf of UNAIDS and committed the organization to make the money work for women and girls by making sure that global financial commitments make a difference at country level.

Dr Piot accepted the torch on
behalf of UNAIDS and
committed the organization
to make the money work for
women and girls.

“Achieving MDG6 to halt and reverse AIDS depends on significant progress on MDG3,” said Dr Piot. “While at country level we see significant progress on policy development for gender equity in HIV service provision, it is a major concern that specific budget allocations to back these policies up are generally not there” he added.

Other recipients of the MDG3 torch at the Geneva event were Mary Robinson, former President of Ireland; Graca Machel, Daisy Mafubelu, Assistant Director-General - Family and Community Health, World Health Organization; and Dr. Julian Lob-Levyt, Executive Secretary, Global Alliance for Vaccines and Immunization (GAVI).

On September 25th, the President of the General Assembly Srgjan Kerim and the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon will co-host and chair a high-level event on the Millennium Development Goals in New York. This event will bring together governments, leaders from the private sector, civil society and faith based organizations to review progress made in the preceding 12 months and accelerate action on the MDGs taking stock of progress so far, showcase successes the world could build on, set a path for the future to 2015, and allow each group to make practical commitments.

The first panel discussion on the second day of the 2008 High-Level meeting on AIDS is on the topic of gender equality and AIDS.

This panel will be broadcast live via internet webcast at 14:00 GMT  

Overview

Globally, women comprised half of adults living with HIV in 2007 and in sub-Saharan Africa, 61% of people living with HIV are women.

A range of biological, cultural and economic factors make women vulnerable to HIV and disproportionately burden them with the epidemic’s impact. Vulnerability can start even before women become adults as many girls under the age of 18 experience early sexual initiation, unsafe sex, early marriage and widespread sexual exploitation and violence.

The widely-held beliefs, expectations, customs and practices within a society that define ‘masculine’ and ‘feminine’ attributes, behaviours and roles and responsibilities lead to gender inequality. This inequality often results in women and girls having less access to education, health services and income-earning opportunities than men and boys.

Women and girls also are the main providers of care and support to household members with AIDS.

Current situation

Government commitments in the 2001 Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS and in the 2006 Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS acknowledged that HIV services and programmes reaching women and girls need to be scaled up if the course of the epidemic is to be reversed.

However, much still needs to be done. For example, only 34% of women living with HIV are provided with antiretroviral treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission, far below the 80% target.

Women’s participation in decision-making helps make HIV services and programmes more sensitive to gender inequalities however opportunities are often limited and they are often absent from dialogues that shape global and national AIDS policies and programmes.

Some specific actions that may make a difference include: the importance of cross-sectoral national strategies that reach beyond health to include social and economic empowerment; prioritizing young women and girls’ access to HIV prevention and other sexual and reproductive health services; inclusion of HIV-positive women in the planning and design of AIDS policies and programmes.

The Chair of this discussion is Ms. Anna Marzec–Boguslawska, Head of the National AIDS Centre (Poland) and the panelists are H.E. Mr. Francisco Duque III, Minister of Health (Philippines); Ms. Rosa González (Honduras), LACASSO - ICASO3; Ms. Thoraya Obaid, Executive Director, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The Chair’s summary of this discussion will be published after the event, please check back to access it.

The meeting identified challenges,
opportunities and ways to ensure the
incorporation of human rights and gender
issues in the adoption and amendment of
HIV-related legislation.

In adopting the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS in 2001 at the UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS, Governments have fully recognized the importance of protecting human rights and gender equality through appropriate legal frameworks in national responses to HIV.

The enactment of laws that incorporate the protection of human rights and gender enable those vulnerable to HIV infection to access HIV prevention and also allow those living with HIV to be free from discrimination and human rights abuses. However, insufficient attention is often paid in national responses to HIV to the reform of discriminatory law or to working with Parliaments, judges and police to ensure appropriate enforcement of law. The result is that human rights abuses in the form of discrimination, gender inequality and violence against women, and violations of confidentiality and privacy continue to increase vulnerability to HIV infection and represent a barrier to effective responses to HIV.

In recognition of these concerns, UNAIDS in collaboration with UNDP, UNICEF, UNFPA, UNIFEM, WHO, AWARE/USAID, OSIWA, ECOWAS, OHCHR and the African and Arab Parliamentarian Forum, has held two workshops one in July 2007 and one from 16 – 18 April 2008 in Dakar to assist countries to consider where they stand on developing legislative frameworks in the response to HIV and how to ensure the best possible legislation.

Although the law cannot make HIV prevention or treatment happen - only sufficient HIV programmes and services can - the law can create an environment to empower people with knowledge, social support and protection from discrimination so behaviour change and access to HIV prevention, treatment and care can happen without negative consequences.

Some of the aspects of the Ndjamena Law
that were debated among the participants
involved mandatory HIV testing,
confidentiality or disclosure of HIV
information, the criminalization of HIV
transmission, and the rights of women and
other vulnerable groups.

In 2004, the African and Arab Parliamentarians Forum for Population and Development adopted the “Ndjamena Law” on the prevention, care and control of HIV.  This was a flexible and adaptable legal instrument that States could use to guide their legislation development process according to their legal, social, political and cultural environment. The law contained many positive aspects, but it has also become clear that some provisions in the Ndjamena Law could be substantially improved in order to best meet two of the critical concerns in the response to AIDS: that of protecting public health and that of protecting human rights.

Participants at the April 2008 workshop represented 15 West and Central Africa countries and included parliamentarians, human rights specialists, jurists, civil society members including people living with HIV and representatives of National AIDS Councils. The meeting identified challenges, opportunities and ways to ensure the incorporation of human rights and gender issues in the adoption and amendment of HIV-related legislation.

Some of the aspects of the Ndjamena Law that were debated among the participants involved mandatory HIV testing, confidentiality or disclosure of HIV information, the criminalization of HIV transmission, and the rights of women and other vulnerable groups.

Participants at the April 2008 workshop
represented 15 West and Central Africa
countries and included parliamentarians,
human rights specialists, jurists, civil
society members including people living
with HIV and representatives of National
AIDS Councils.

UNAIDS and other partners recommended several documents developed since the promulgation of the Ndjamena law that can be used as guidance in order to amend HIV-related legislation in accordance to international legal standards and to ensure that the language used to enact the law does not promote human rights abuses.  These documents include the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS (2006), the International Guidelines on Human Rights and HIV, Consolidated Version (2006), Taking Action against HIV, Handbook for Parliamentarians (2007) and “UNAIDS Recommendations for Alternative Language in the Ndjamena Legislation on HIV” (2008).

Participants agreed that the process of incorporating human rights and gender in HIV related legal frameworks underlines the need to develop legal measures not as tools for coercion but as instruments to empower people through respect of their human rights. Punitive or coercive legal measures exacerbate already existing HIV stigma and discrimination and drive people away from HIV prevention and treatment programmes, thus undermining the effectiveness of national responses to the epidemic.

“Protecting the rights of people living with HIV does not mean less protection for other members of the community. On the contrary, protecting the rights of people living with HIV and members of vulnerable groups promotes access to HIV prevention, care and support services which benefit the whole community and make for a more effective response to HIV,” said Dr Meskerem Grunitzky-Bekele, Director of the UNAIDS Regional Support Team for West and Central Africa.

Since the early nineties Patricia Pérez has
raised her voice to speak out for and
advocate for the rights of women living
with or affected by HIV.

Leadership is the expression of a person whose aim is to transform something for the better and to develop this potential in others. Often leadership abilities are brought to the fore by certain crises in life enabling people to discover abilities that they didn’t know they had.

Activist Patricia Pérez is one such person. Since the early nineties she has raised her voice, along with other activists, to speak out for and advocate for the rights of women living with or affected by HIV.

Patricia Pérez was only 24 years old she found out she was HIV-positive. That was in 1986 and doctors told her that her life-expectancy would not be longer than two years. Today Pérez is the coordinator of the Latin American branch of the International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW), an organization of truly global reach which she helped to found.

Personal journey of discovery

Patricia was working as a gymnastics teacher in the city of her birth, Buenos Aires, Argentina at the time of her HIV diagnosis. After the shocking news she could only think one week at a time and couldn’t imagine a future life.

One day she decided to no longer dwell exclusively on her own situation and shifted her focus to others. She formed a volunteer group at the Muniz Hospital for people living with HIV that met weekly together to listen and support each other. Perez realized that all people living with HIV shared specific needs and experiences and that strength came from connecting together in networks.

Five years later she took part in a demonstration in London of 10,000 people living with HIV and realised that she was not alone and the power of a collective voice.

Early days of ICW

In 1992 at age 30, Patricia helped found
the International Community of Women
Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW).

In 1992 at age 30, Patricia helped found the International Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (ICW). This milestone in the history women’s AIDS advocacy happened when she and a group of 30 HIV positive women from different countries were attending the 8th International Conference on AIDS held in Amsterdam that year. Inspired by the idea that by working together they could make a difference to the lives of all women living with HIV, they drew up a charter on improving the situation of women living with HIV.

Today ICW has 8,000 members in 57 countries and is the only international network led by and for of HIV positive women.

“While the epidemic continues to have a devastating impact on women, Pérez, and other positive leaders are vital voices against stigma and discrimination.  They have led the way in  advocating for prevention, treatment, care and support services for people living with HIV, including those specifically tailored to the needs of positive women,” said UNAIDS Senior Partnership Adviser, Kate Thomson.

Women and HIV

Perez continues today to advocate at regional and international levels for women’s rights and greater involvement of women in clinical trials and scientific research on drug efficacy and HIV progression. She regularly organizes symposia and conferences across Latin America and participates in international events.

Women comprise about half of all people living with HIV worldwide and in sub-Saharan Africa, where the epidemic is worst, they make up an estimated 57% of adults living with HIV, and three quarters of young people living with HIV on the continent are young women aged 15-24.