A global disease and its governance: HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa and the agency of NGOs

This article provides a theoretical assessment of the agency attributed to nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) within the emerging international governance of HIV/AIDS. The analysis, which focuses on the pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa, responds to the question of how effectively NGOs are able to function in policy interventions in the long term. It looks at the nature of the emerging governance system and the role it attributes to NGOs, then raises questions for this system by looking at the operational characteristics of NGOs in context. In conclusion, it suggests that although NGOs have been important actors in this field, they do not have the sort of agency required for sustainable long-term policy interventions in the HIV/AIDS context.