Sala Meeting, edificio 15, piano 3, ore 14-15

While social sustainability has not been attributed an explicit definition yet, scholars and international institutions agree that it concerns the way individuals inhabit a society, in the way that all their need should be met without harming other people or the environment. The United Nations (UN) address the matter by including the well-being of populations – seen as a staple of social sustainability – in their Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which include, among others health promotion (Goal 3) and gender equality for all populations (Goal 5).

This research project is set within the specific framework of these last two Goals, and its predominant aim is to evaluate the relationship between intimate partner violence (IPV) and HIV prevalence in East and Southern Africa. Indeed, 65% of all people living with HIV reside in this region and recent data show that one in three women is abused by an intimate partner at least once in her lifetime.

This doctoral thesis thus contains the outcomes of four research studies concerning the determinants of HIV and IPV prevalence, as well as an insight on gender-based violence among victims of human trafficking living in Palermo, Italy.

The comprehensive results of these studies could be useful to policy-makers and other agencies initiating programs in the region that address education, HIV prevention projects involving preventive treatments, as well as women’s empowerment.