Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Political Science as an academic discipline has been slow to grapple with the enormous implications of the AIDS crisis for much of the developing world. This paper argues that there are important research agendas linking AIDS and politics, and that more work in these areas could contribute to the struggle to cope with the pandemic. Research could also yield theoretical advances in the field of Political Science. I sketch out five research agendas as they relate to Africa. They center on variations in state response to the pandemic; the relationship between governments and NGOs; the AIDS challenge to neo-liberalism; AIDS and North-South tensions; and connections between AIDS and international security issues. There is a growing awareness of the importance of macro-political and institutional factors in shaping the dynamics of the crisis and governmental responses to it, but these factors remain poorly understood. Taking up the research challenge can give political scientists a role in the war on a disease that is transforming Africa in ways we have only begun to imagine.