HERAF

Project Overview

Gender Development Project under the program, "Development of a strengthened response to HIV/AIDS" is a project that was initiated by Stop Aids Now! of the Netherlands in response to the urgent need to address the increased vulnerability of women and girls to HIV/AIDS through innovative and evidence-based approaches. SAN!GDP is a coalition of twenty five community -based and non-governmental organizations co-ordinated by WOFAK focusing on HIV/AIDS, human rights and women's empowerment working together on HIV prevention activities that integrate promotion of egalitarian gender attitudes, behaviors and norms and women rights in Kenya.

Efforts to contain the spread of HIV/AIDS still remains a challenge to governments and communities especially among those who are less able to respond to the threat or consequences of infection because of social, economic or gender imbalances. HIV/AIDS affects everyone, but increasingly it is striking women.  In the absence of other risk factors, it is believed that in vaginal intercourse it is two to three time more likely for women to contract HIV than men. According to KAIS study 2007, for example, HIV prevalence was estimated at 9.2% among women compared to 5.8% among men.

This is as a result of their biological make up whereby women have larger surface area of exposure in than in men, thus increasing their vulnerability to infection. Vaginal fluids tend to contain less HIV in women than men, women are exposed to a larger quantity of infectious fluid than men during intercourse, women usually retain the secretions within the body after sex, whereas men are generally exposed only during the sex act and also portions of the woman's genital tract are more vulnerable to infection than the thicker skin of the penis.

As a result of social cultural provisions, women have often been positioned as inferior to men, are expected to be submissive to men with men being the decision makers and in control of both productive roles benefits and sexuality. This renders women as a vulnerable group with low negotiation power of taking charge of their own lives. Gender inequities encourage men to practice double standards in sexuality as a way of proving their masculinity. Such gender inequities promote HIV prevalence mostly among women whereby one single man is able to infect a large number of people within a given community.

Economically women are vulnerable due to lack of access to education and information which renders them to becoming over dependent on men. Women continue to have less access to, and control over, key productive resources such as land, income, credit and employment and as a result many women do not have the economic power necessary to insist on protective measures and fidelity or to abandon partnerships that put them at risk. Poverty that results from lack of economic empowerment is also a strong driving force among women in engaging into risky lifestyles such as prostitution, in search for financial benefits to satisfy their needs and those of their children, irrespective of the risk of HIV infection.

Violence against women which is one of the most unyielding and fundamental stumbling blocks encountered by efforts made towards enabling women and young girls to enjoy their rights and realize their full potential in the society is another leading cause of an increased spread of HIV/AIDS. Violence against women presents itself in physical, psychological and sexual variations through; wife battering, femicide, rape and marital rape, female genital cutting, wife inheritance, virgin myths (men's erotic belief that they can be cleansed from HIV virus by around sleeping with virgins), sexual harassments, forced marriages, forced prostitution ( men giving their wives away to sleep with other men for economic gain or women allowing their daughters to sleep around with men for financial support), or forced pregnancy.  This is usually as a result of gender inequities between men and women, and happens at the household level, community level, at work places or within the political arena. These forms of violence against women are usually consequences of women's vulnerability to HIV and prevalence.

The project seeks to add value to the HIV/AIDS-focused activities by collaborating with local organizations in Kenya and Indonesia. In Kenya, the collaboration is aimed at implementing Gender and Development Projects (GDP) that address factors that contribute to the rapid spread of HIV among women and girls. While the primary beneficiaries are women and girls aged 15-60 years, the extended family members (spouses/partners, brothers, and parents) are considered secondary beneficiaries, in the hope that by targeting the women and girls in their families, the benefits of the intervention will trickle down to other members of the family as well.

Through the integration of gender, HIV/AIDS and Human Rights in GDP activities, the project is expected to reach out to communities all over Kenya in increasing knowledge on gender issues and bringing into the fore aspects of gender equity among the target groups. This is with an aim to empower women and ensure that their rights are protected and fulfilled.

Target Geographical Locations

The project targets the Eastern, Central and Rift Valley regions through community based forums and provision of legal aid clinics to clients affected by gender, HIV/AIDS and human rights related issues during the forums.

Successful HIV prevention requires concerted efforts and far reaching actions to challenge and change harmful gender norms and inequities that exist between men and women, through focused action to make community environment safer especially for women and girls, by advocating for the protection and promotion of their rights.  Through the support of SAN! to the project, interventions have been made especially in incorporating men's participation in gender issues, with an aim to encourage their continued support of women and young girls in protecting their rights.

The aim of Gender Development Project is to transform gender attitudes, behaviors and norms as a means to reduce women's risk to HIV infection.

Specifically the project intends:

• To promote egalitarian gender based attitudes, behaviors and norms to prevent HIV infection among women and girls.
• To promote women's rights.
• To provide learning opportunities to coalition members and other stakeholders through documentation and dissemination of information on the project outcomes.