Averting 'New Variant Famine' in Southern Africa: building food-secure livelihoods with AIDS-affected young people

Numerous reports have linked AIDS’ impacts on young people and their long term food insecurity, through, for instance, orphans’ failure to inherit property and resources; inability to retain rights to land which they are too young or inexperienced to farm; or interruption of intergenerational knowledge transfer following parental deaths. Hitherto, however, reports have only addressed isolated aspects of young people’s livelihood prospects, and most lack substantive evidence. Impacts of AIDS on young people’s attitudes and dispositions remain neglected.  responds to the clear need to understand better how AIDS affects young people’s livelihood participation in varying geographical/livelihood contexts.

The research covered in this report aimed to generate new, in- depth understanding of how AIDS, in interaction with other factors, is impacting on the livelihood activities, opportunities and choices of young people in rural southern Africa. This was intended to support the development of policies and interventions that enhance AIDS- affected young people’s prospects of achieving sustainable, food -secure livelihoods throughout the region.