International Politics of HIV/Aids Global Disease-local Pain

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the most catastrophic phenomena that has and will continue to impact people's lives in Sub-Saharan Africa, influencing all aspects of society. Today around 29 million people are living with the disease in the region. The disease has been named a Global Disease and been given importance in various international organisations including the United Nations, World Bank, International Monetary Fund and aid agencies. This has led to the creation in 1996 of specific AIDS related international agency with global reach: The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. The aim is to tackle this global issue with a global effort. This book examines the global governance of HIV/AIDS epidemic, interrogating the role of this international system and global discourse on HIV/AIDS interventions. The geographical focus is Sub-Saharan Africa since the region has been at the forefront of these interventions. There is a need to understand the relationship between the international political environment and the impact of resulting policies on HIV/AIDS in the context of people's lives. The book points out a certain disjuncture between this governance structures and the way people experience the disease in their everyday lives. Although the structure allows people to emerge as policy relevant target groups and beneficiaries, the articulation of needs and design of policy interventions tends to reflect international priorities rather than people's thinking on the problem. In other words, it is argued that while the international interventions highlight the importance attributed to the HIV/AIDS problem, the nature of the system does not allow interventions to be far reaching and sustainable. Offering a critical contribution to the understanding of the problems in HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa, this book will be invaluable to students and researchers of health, international politics and development.Seckinelgin, Hakan is the author of 'International Politics of HIV/Aids Global Disease-local Pain', published 2007 under ISBN 9780415413848 and ISBN 0415413842.