Women in Chinsapo, Malawi: vulnerability and risk to HIV/AIDS

Abstract

Malawi, a very poor country located in southern Africa, is no exception to the growing trend and severity in HIV prevalence. By the end of 2003 there were 900 000 adults and children in Malawi living with HIV/AIDS. Adult prevalence was estimated to be 15%, which is higher than the 7.1% average rate for sub-Saharan Africa. In order to understand the spread of HIV/AIDS it is imperative to address the economic, social, cultural, and political issues that impact on women's contraction and spread of the virus. We do so in this paper by critically examining the gendered context of HIV/AIDS with reference to Malawi. The theoretical framework for this research focuses on poverty, gender relations, regional migration patterns, and global economic changes which place women in highly vulnerable situations. The study was conducted in a low-income area in Lilongwe, the capital city of Malawi. In 2003 and 2004, 60 randomly selected women who lived in a low socioeconomic residential area completed a structured interview on issues concerning individual economic situations, marriage history, fertility, family planning and social networks, gender, sexual partnerships, and HIV/AIDS. Focus group interviews were also conducted with an additional 20 women. The results of our study indicate that the rising epidemic among women in Malawi is firstly driven by poverty which limits their options. Secondly, gender inequality and asymmetrical sexual relations are basic to spreading HIV/AIDS among women. Thirdly, in spite of their awareness through media and health care professionals, women are unable to protect themselves, which further increases their vulnerability.

Conflicting discourses of church youths on masculinity and sexuality in the context of HIV in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo

“…As in other sub-Saharan African countries, the HIV epidemic in DRC is mainly transmitted through unprotected sex (UNAIDS 2003 ). Studies have shown that poor and sexually active girls are vulnerable to HIV because they lack agency to negotiate safer sex not only with older men (Ghosh & Kalipeni 2005 ), but also, in general, when they exchange sex for money (Bhana & Pattman 2011 ). In order to prevent HIV, many interventions empower women and girls to protect themselves (Ricardo, Nascimento, Fonseca & Segundo 2010 ).…”

HIV and “People on the Move”: Six Strategies to Reduce Risk and Vulnerability during the Migration Process

“…Some 15 years later, and on a different continent, researchers came to much the same finding: Tajik wives of men working in Moscow never used condoms, never suggested doing so, and found it shameful to discuss such things (Golobof et al, 2011). Indeed, such gender norms around employment and around intimate partner relations interact with mobility to increase HIV vulnerability and risk in communities of origin across a wide range of other countries and cultures (see Ghosh and Kalipeni, 2005 for Malawi; Jordan Smith, 2010 for Nigeria; Yang and Xia, 2006 for China).…”

Gender, HIV and Risk

“…Inequalities of gender mean that women disproportionately experience poverty and are placed at particular risk of infection (see Ghosh and Kalipeni, 2005;Bryceson et al, 2004). 1 As is the situation more generally, women in Malawi are susceptible to hunger and poor nutrition, even in situations where there is no food scarcity (NSO Malawi and ORC Macro, 2005, pp.…”