Social Protection

There has been a growing recognition over the past decade of the importance of social protection as an approach for responding to a range of challenges faced by developing countries, including food insecurity, chronic poverty and the affects of HIV.

This is timely in light of the global economic crisis, which has further undermined weak family and community safety nets.  Social protection in the context of HIV is increasingly recognized as a mechanism that contributes to social upliftment and boader development. Social protection is particularly relevant to HIV because of its potential to address issues such as gender inequality, orpanhood, and stigma and discrimination, which exacerbate marginalisation and vulnerability faced by key populations at higher risk of infection.