UNAIDS (Geneva) - March 8, 2003

Yet for the first time at the end of 2001, women accounted for 50 percent of all people living with HIV or AIDS worldwide. In sub-Saharan Africa, the figure was 58 percent.

There is no question that we understand women's vulnerabilities to HIV vulnerabilities based on biological factors, culture, and on their social and economic status. We know that women face domestic violence, at times exacerbated by conflict or insecurity; that girls are the first to be pulled from school and put to work when AIDS strikes at home; that women lack the power and economic independence to negotiate sexual safety. We also know that women face the full brunt of the stigma and discrimination associated with HIV, which fuels their fear of getting tested, and prevents them from seeking care if they are infected. We also know that inequalities between the sexes and women's lack of power to challenge these inequalities lie at the heart of their vulnerability. We now have a framework within with to redress these inequalities. The Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS is clear about what we must do and when we must do it.

But we also know much, much more. We know what works. We know that empowering women works. Expanding reproductive health services, training peer educators and providing micro-credit works. Where women have participated in decision-making and in managing health services, HIV/AIDS interventions have worked. When girls are educated and kept in school, they are more likely to be able to protect themselves from HIV infection.

Women may be vulnerable, but we must distinguish between vulnerability and weakness. Women have shown great courage and resourcefulness in facing the epidemic. They have practised safer sex when it was dangerous to do so; they have successfully pushed through legal reforms protecting their rights; they have consistently provided care, both at home and in health care settings. Wherever we look, we see the hope women have generated by their actions.

We have waited too long. Today, we are reminded that AIDS has a woman's face. Let us use International Women's Day as a starting point to stop the waiting, and put our knowledge into action now.

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