In response to increasing acknowledgement of the importance of engaging men and boys within gender equality and HIV work, Sonke was commissioned by the UNFPA, United Nations Population Fund, to carry out a desk review of HIV and AIDS National Strategic Plans (NSPs), analysing the extent to which they commit to working with men and boys for gender equality and in relation to HIV and AIDS.
NSPs from the following 16 countries were analysed: South Africa, Rwanda, Kenya, Papua New Guinea, Pakistan, Ukraine, Jamaica, Cambodia, Serbia, Liberia, Sudan, Nicaragua, Brazil, Cote D’Ivoire, Haiti and India, in terms of their engagement with key issues of gender equality, and especially the degree to which men and boys are incorporated within this engagement.
The analysis of these 16 NSPs reveals that most countries acknowledge the importance of a gender perspective within HIV and AIDS work and many commit to mainstreaming gender across all areas of their HIV and AIDS work. However, while a few of the NSPs acknowledge the harmful effects of certain gender norms, very little is proposed in the way of detailed strategies to specifically challenge or attempt to transform them.
