UNIFEM launches new push to ensure gender equality in fight against HIV/AIDS

The United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM) today announced the launch of a new initiative aimed at helping 10 developing countries ensure a gender-balanced approach to combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

The three-year, $3 million effort will be carried out in Kenya, Nigeria, Senegal, Zimbabwe, Rwanda, India, Cambodia, Thailand, Barbados and Brazil. The project centres on reviewing relevant legislation and policies to ensure gender equality in the fight against AIDS, according to UNIFEM.

Highlighting the heavy toll which the disease takes on women and society at large, UNIFEM Executive Director Noeleen Heyzer pointed out that “Women are forced to abandon their work, girls are pulled out of school, and the development of countries is postponed.”

The initiative is being financed through the UN Trust Fund for Human Security, which is funded by the Government of Japan.