African Studies Blog

Here is a summary from ELDIS of the findings from a  behavioural surveillance study of men who have sex with men in Kigali, Rwanda. The study was conducted in 2008-2009 to describe this population in Kigali, and explore the  nature of sexual activity between MSM. 

Internationally men who have sex with men (MSM) have been identified as a high risk group for HIV acquisition, due to a tendency towards higher risk sexual behaviours and greater numbers of casual (and often commercial) sexual partners. This report from the National AIDS Control Commission Rwanda presents findings from a behavioural surveillance study (BSS) of men who have sex with men in Kigali, Rwanda. Ninety nine questionnaires were carried out which aimed to describe the population of MSM in Kigali and explore the nature of sexual activity between MSM. It was found that MSM in Kigali are at elevated risk for HIV infection compared to the general population, and require specific HIV/STI prevention services/support. The research uncovered a high level of commercial and transactional sex among MSM in Kigali and a high degree of overlap of sexual networks between MSM living in different regions in Rwanda, and perhaps in different countries in East Africa. Approximately one-quarter of respondents reported sex with a woman in the past 12 months. Nearly 40% of these respondents also reported engaging in transactional sex with a woman in the past 12 months.

The authors suggest that further research is urgently needed to assess HIV/other STI prevalence among MSM. They also recommend additional research into MSM sexual networks (i.e. commercial and transactional sex, sex with women, sex and travel). It is recommended that within a sensitive human rights framework, HIV/STI awareness-raising campaigns targeting MSM should be carried out in a method that maximises privacy and safety, and avoids any unintended population-directed stigma and discrimination. The document additionally highlights that health services should be reoriented to ensure that they are MSM-friendly and focused on the specific sexual health needs of MSM. Most urgently, efforts should be made to improve access to sexuality-sensitive psychosocial services, e.g. counselling, for MSM.

Full Report

From The Washington Post:

On a continent that has been dominated by the rule of men, this tiny East African nation is trying something new. Here, women are not only driving the economy — working on construction sites, in factories and as truck and taxi drivers — they are also filling the ranks of government. Full Story

From African Affairs

Across Africa, many countries have taken initiatives to increase the participation and representation of women in governance. Yet it is unclear what meaning these initiatives have in authoritarian, single-party states like Rwanda. Since seizing power in 1994, the Rwandan Patriotic Front has taken many steps to increase the participation of women in politics such as creating a Ministry of Gender, organizing women’s councils at all levels of government, and instituting an electoral system with reserved seats for women in the national parliament. This article explores the dramatic increase in women’s participation in public life and representation in governance and the increasing authoritarianism of the Rwandan state under the guise of ‘democratization’. The increased political participation of women in Rwanda represents a paradox in the short term: as their participation has increased, women’s ability to influence policy making has decreased. In the long term, however, increased female representation in government could prepare the path for their meaningful participation in a genuine democracy because of a transformation in political subjectivity.

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Here is an uplifting article in the Washington Post on female entrepreneurialism in Rwanda and how that has greatly helped efforts to rebuild the country’s economy and the fight against poverty there.