Twenty-eight Burundian political and ex-militia leaders are due to resume meetings again on Wednesday in a bid to finalise the country's post-transitional power-sharing agreement. The two-day meeting will be held in Pretoria, South Africa, at the invitation of the facilitator of the Burundi peace process, South African Deputy-President Jacob Zuma. He has invited all 17 political parties that signed the Arusha Agreement, three former rebel movements that signed the ceasefire accords, and eight newly approved political parties in an effort to resolve the power-sharing issue that has blocked the development of a post-transitional constitution.

Gender inequality, power dynamics in sexual relations, and women’s lack of economic empowerment relate directly to patterns of poverty and are key factors in the spread of HIV/AIDS. At the same time, the epidemic leads to new social and economic burdens – often borne by women and girls – among households affected by HIV/AIDS that can stretch household safety nets to the breaking point. Defusing this self-reinforcing relationship between poverty and HIV/AIDS requires understanding how individuals and communities might best employ their resources and assets to prevent infection and to mitigate the consequences of HIV/AIDS.