Book Description

This rapid pace at which the epidemic moves through the society and the expanding numbers of HIV/AIDS-related deaths together with the socioeconomic impact provide impetus for further analysis of the relationship between HIV/AIDS and the various segments of not only the economy but also population in a broader manner. [...] However, the intensifying responses to the disease have either focused on prevention, care treatment and impacts on limited sectors and people or the nature of the disease, the ways it is transmitted and the reasons why it is so devastating in its impacts (CODESRIA 2003; Okuro 2003). [...] The paper particularly seeks to answer the question: to what extent has the emergence of HIV/AIDS impacted widows' and orphans' land rights, particularly the ability to hold, use and transact land at the local level? The paper relies on testimonies from HIV/AIDS infected and affected households. [...] The prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in the division, according to the latest District Development Plan (2005), stands at 38 percent and is among the highest in the country. [...] What emerges from the discussion above is that HIV/AIDS narrows livelihood options and the disposal of productive assets and the depletion of savings to meet medical and other expenses are becoming a visible consequence of the pandemic in Kombewa.