The Impact of HIV/AIDS on Rural Livelihoods in Ekufikeni, Swaziland (2008)

Undergraduate: Valerie Scott

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My study explores the impact of HIV/AIDS on rural livelihoods among a small community of farmers in Swaziland. The research questions on which my study was based included: In what specific ways are rural livelihoods impacted by HIV/AIDS? How are AIDS-affected households coping with adverse impact? During the summer of 2007, I conducted multiple interviews with fifteen respondents, exploring household composition, morbidity, mortality, livelihood strategies and coping strategies. The findings of my research indicate that HIV/AIDS has increased the vulnerability of rural households to food and livelihood insecurity. HIV/AIDS interacts with existing conditions of poverty, food insecurity and high rates of mobility and migration to weaken rural livelihoods. AIDS-affected households are experiencing labor shortages, food insecurity and the depletion of important assets. These households are using coping strategies that will increase long-term vulnerability, including: eating less, selling assets and withdrawing children from school.
The impact of HIV/AIDS is feminized, with women assuming care-giving responsibilities. Grandmothers were identified as a particularly vulnerable group of people as they foster increasing numbers of orphans with very little support. These findings indicate that HIV/AIDS is damaging household food and livelihood security, as well as placing unsustainable strains upon grandmother-headed households. Increased support and intervention is necessary to provide treatment to HIV-positive individuals, strengthen overall food security and provide reliable assistance to grandmother-headed households.