HIV/AIDS and Water, Sanitation and Hygiene

Evelien Kamminga and Madeleen Wegelin-Schuringa (KIT) (2006)

AIDS is not a water-related disease. HIV is not spread via contaminated water or poor hygiene. So why do we need a Thematic Overview Paper (TOP) on the influence of HIV/AIDS on the water, sanitation and hygiene (WSH) sector? The first answer to that question lies in the devastating impact of the HIV/AIDS epidemic on the staff and the customers of WSH service providers in the worst-hit countries. The second reason that this paper is pertinent relates to the changing demands for WSH services brought about by the effects of HIV/AIDS on households and communities. Thirdly, improved WSH services can and do have a crucial role to play in slowing the progression of HIV and in reducing the number of AIDS-related deaths.

This TOP is relevant not only for those countries that are already highly affected by the epidemic (mainly in Africa), but also those countries with rapidly increasing infection rates (in Asia and Eastern Europe) and those that are in the beginning stage or not yet affected by the epidemic. Among other things, this TOP adresses:

• The linkages between HIV/AIDS and water, sanitation and hygiene from different perspectives
• The impact of HIV/AIDS on water and sanitation organisations and service provision
• The lessons learned in preventing and mitigating the effects of HIV/AIDS both outside and inside the water and sanitation sector
• What the water and sanitation sector can do about the problem of HIV/AIDS at different levels

- Download:

TOP2HIV_AIDS05.pdf (377 kB)

- Series:

Thematic Overview Paper 2, 66 p.