Syncretism and subversion in AIDS governance: how locals cope with global demands |
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| Authors: | ANN SWIDLER |
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| Institution: | Professor of Sociology at the University of California, Berkeley. She is the author of Talk of love;(2001), How culture matters (2001) and editor (with Richard Madsen, Williams M. Sullivan and Steven M. Tipton) of Meaning and modernity: religion, polity, self (2002). Her current research explores social and political capacities for confronting HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa as well as the culture and organization of the international AIDS enterprise. |
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| Abstract: | This article raises a set of theoretical questions about culture and governance in organizational responses to AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. It draws on material from two visits to sub-Saharan Africa (Botswana in July 2003 and Malawi in June and July of 2004): interviews with government officials, international organization representatives and staff from AIDS NGOs across a variety of settings in sub-Saharan governance. The article examines the relation of AIDS governance to existing patterns of African governance and argues that while 'institutional isomorphism' can be imposed by international funders, such efforts often produce paradoxical outcomes on the ground. It seeks to understand why the intersection between the organizational models proffered by AIDS NGOs and existing patterns of authority and cooperation produce either syncretism, subversion, or simply a standoff. |
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