Culture, Women and HIV and AIDS

The biggest threat to the world’s population in the next few decades will be the prevalence of HIV and AIDS. Since 1985, there has been an increasingly disproportionate impact on women in sub Saharan Africa. HIV and AIDS has not leveled off and the prevalence along the Lake Victoria region in Homa Bay County is stubbornly increasing. This prevalence is understood more in terms of the cultural and social components of the region. Females are at a higher risk of this terrible epidemic than males for many reasons including biological differences, social inequalities and destructive cultural norms that are grounded in patriarchy. Worse still, women are often portrayed as the victims, vessels and vectors of the disease. This book, therefore, provides information on specific sociocultural vulnerability factors predisposing women to HIV and AIDS disaster. Quantitative and qualitative data from women aged between 15 and 49 years who had patronized selected Voluntary Counseling centres were analyzed. The analysis should be useful to professionals in healthcare and gender studies fields, or anyone else who may be considering prioritizing gender issues in local development programmes.