Occupational Segregation, Gender Essentialism and Male Primacy as Major Barriers to Equity in HIV Care Giving: Findings from Lesotho

This article in the International Journal for Equity in Health draws on research conducted during the Capacity Project, the predecessor to CapacityPlus.

Gender segregation of occupations has been recognized as a major source of inequality worldwide with implications for the development of robust health workforces. In sub-Saharan Africa, gender inequalities are particularly acute in HIV/AIDS caregiving (90% of which is provided in the home), where women and girls make up the informal (and mostly unpaid) workforce. Men's and boy's entry into HIV/AIDS caregiving in greater numbers would both increase the equity and sustainability of national and community-level HIV/AIDS caregiving and mitigate health workforce shortages, but notions of gender essentialism and male primacy make this far from inevitable. The Capacity Project partnered with the Lesotho Ministry of Health and Social Welfare in a study of the gender dynamics of HIV/AIDS caregiving to account for men's absence in HIV/AIDS caregiving and investigate ways in which they might be recruited into the community and home-based care workforce. This article presents findings and recommendations resulting from the study.