Swaziland and HIV/AIDS

The unfolding tragedy in Swaziland highlights what can happen when a country marked by poor governance and human rights standards is confronted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic. The Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa (OSISA) has responded by helping civil society in Swaziland improve governance and human rights, particularly the rights of women.

OSISA support for local NGOs such as Swaziland Positive Living works to increase the rights of women and others affected by HIV/AIDS by focusing on inheritance laws and preventing the rampant property-grabbing that has followed the epidemic. The initiative has also supported a coalition of gender-focused NGOs and civil society organizations in their efforts to participate in the development and implementation of Swaziland’s Round 7 Global Fund proposal.

Signs of Progress

• Annual national surveys indicate that HIV prevalence rates among women 15 to 19 years old dropped from 3 percent in 2002 to 9 percent in 2006.
• Government surveys show that the HIV/AIDS epidemic peaked in 2002, and infection rates among men and women ages 15-24 had stabilized by 2006.
• By 2006 Swaziland was beginning to meet UN standards by providing antiretroviral treatment to about 8 percent of the estimated 37,000 people who needed it.

Enduring Challenges

• Among Swaziland’s population of 1.1 million, an estimated one out of every three adults is infected with HIV.
• Comprehensive plans for HIV/AIDS testing, antiretroviral treatment, and providing for the country’s growing orphan population exist but are severely hampered by stigma, lack of funds, and human resources, and have lagged behind the epidemic’s spread.
• While antiretroviral drugs are more accessible, effective treatment is undermined by a 70 percent poverty rate that prevents most patients from eating nutritiously and traveling regularly to treatment centers.
• As of 2007 less than 20 percent of Swaziland’s population knew their HIV/AIDS status.
• The unequal economic, legal, and social status of women in Swaziland makes them particularly vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. If the rights of women are not protected and improved, and issues like polygamy and denial of contraceptives to women are not confronted and changed, women in Swaziland will continue to bear the brunt of the HIV/AIDS epidemic.
• People who are HIV positive in Swaziland face substantial stigmatization and have very little direct involvement or participation in the development of Swaziland’s HIV/AIDS policies.

For More Information

To review assessments of Swaziland’s HIV/AIDS treatment efforts, visit the WHO website's Swaziland section and the Open Society Initiative for Southern Africa website.