Governing AIDS through aid to civil society: Global solutions meet local problems in Mozambique

Abstract

The aim of this article is to explore how international donors influence civil society organisations (CSOs) in Mozambique through funding mechanisms, the creation of partnerships, or inclusion in targeted programmes. The main focus is the relationship between donors and AIDS non-governmental organisations (NGOs). The main questions the paper aims to answer are: Who is setting the agenda? What power mechanisms are in place to fulfil planned projects and programmes? Are there any forms of resistance from civil society AIDS-organisations in the face of the donor interventions? The actions will be analysed through the lens of governmentality theory. The study concluded that donors have the power to set the agenda through predetermined programmes and using various technologies. Their strongest weapons are audit mechanisms such as the result based management model used as a control mechanism, and there is still a long way to go to achieve a situation with multiple forms of local resistance to the conditions set by economically powerful donors. The standardisation imposed through clustering donors into like-minded groups and other constellations gives them power to govern the politics of AIDS.

Keywords: governmentality, governing at a distance, HIV/AIDS, non-governmental organisation (NGO), Mozambique, power aspects

African Journal of AIDS Research 2013, 12(1): 51–61