Framework for Women, Girls, and Gender Equality in National Strategic Plans on HIV and AIDS in Southern and Eastern Africa

What should a National Strategic Plan include if it meaningfully is to support women, girls and gender equality in the response to HIV/AIDS in the region? In a joint initiative between HEARD's Gender Equality and HIV Prevention Programme and the ATHENA Network, and in collaboration with over 15 endorsing regional and global civil society organisations, a Framework for Women, Girls, and Gender Equality in National Strategic Plans in Southern and Eastern Africa has been developed. This Framework outlines what NSPs in this region need to include if they are to meaningfully respond to the gendered inequalities underlying the HIV/AIDS epidemic.

The Framework is a tool to hold governments accountable in relation to their commitments around women, girls and gender equality in the context of HIV and AIDS.

The Framework for Women, Girls, and Gender Equality in National Strategic Plans in Southern and Eastern Africa is presented as an opportunity to realise critical commitments and advance important policy frameworks for women and girls, such as the African Women's Decade, the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples' Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa and the Millennium Development Goals.

The Framework can be used as a tool for NSP development or review by governmental entities such as National AIDS Councils and ministries of health and gender as well as by gender consultants or advisors.It can also support civil society participation in and mobilisation around NSP development and review.

The Framework is split into 10 sections covering key topics in relation to women, girls and gender equality, including: Prevention; Gender Based Violence; Sexual and Reproductive Rights; and Enabling Environment.

In early 2011, the ATHENA Network and the Gender Equality and HIV Prevention Programme will release the results of how NSPs in the region currently compare to the Framework.

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