Dissertation Research: "Out of the Shadows": Democracy and HIV Risk in Morocco
Through 12 months of fieldwork, combining network analysis, participant observation, interviews, and document analysis, this project draws on and contributes to science, technology, and society studies through an examination of Morocco's AIDS response at two levels of interaction: between locally-based NGOs and larger structures of AIDS governance; and between NGOs and their clients. A comparative ethnographic approach will yield rich data on how different NGOs solicit the participation of affected persons, formulate and enact public health interventions, produce knowledge about heath and disease, and influence the national AIDS response. Broader impacts International health organizations have argued that without greater efforts to manage AIDS in the Middle East and North Africa, the disease will exact a grave toll. Morocco presents a critical case study because its strategies to involve NGOs in AIDS governance are being promoted throughout the region. The objective of the project is to track the practical consequences of efforts to make public health science, policy and practice more responsive to the needs of affected populations. This research will also provide an important comparison for scholars doing work on participatory public health programs in other parts of the world.
This project, funded by a National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant, examines Morocco’s response to HIV/AIDS. International health organizations have argued that without greater efforts to manage AIDS in the Middle East and North Africa, the disease will exact a grave toll. Morocco presents a critical case study because its strategies to involve NGOs in AIDS governance are being promoted throughout the region. Through 26 months of fieldwork, combining participant observation, interviews, and document analysis, this project draws on and contributes to science, technology, and society studies. The research examines Morocco’s AIDS response at two levels of interaction: between locally-based NGOs and larger structures of AIDS governance; and between NGOs and their clients. A comparative ethnographic approach yields rich data on how different NGOs solicit the participation of affected persons, formulate and enact public health interventions, produce knowledge about heath and disease, and influence the national AIDS response. The broader objective of the project is to track the practical consequences of efforts to make public health science, policy and practice more responsive to the needs of affected populations. This research provides an important comparison for scholars doing work on participatory public health programs in other parts of the world. The broader impacts of this project are substantial. Today, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) is one of two regions with the fastest growing HIV/AIDS epidemics in the world. While global and local institutions are taking up the issue in earnest, social science scholarship on HIV has not kept pace, largely neglecting the region. Morocco presents an urgent case study because it is being promoted as a model for emulation throughout the MENA, yet little is known concerning the social, political, and economic consequences of this increasingly common model of health governance. Having forged an extensive network of contacts in public health and academia in Morocco and internationally, the co-PI will widely disseminate the findings from her study. This National Science Foundation Doctoral Dissertation Improvement Grant has also contributed to the education of a social scientist. First, through hands on experience, the grant has allowed the student researcher (co-PI) to develop important skills for conducting, analyzing and presenting qualitative research to impact policies and programs. Second, the student researcher significantly improved her facility in Moroccan Arabic, French, and Modern Standard Arabic, each of which will be crucial for her future involvement in social science and public health research in the Middle East and Africa. Third, in addition to discussing her study with key stakeholders and informants, the researcher has given several presentations on the topic and preliminary findings to local and regional audiences. Finally, the researcher’s experience and time in the field has allowed her to augment her professional network and provided valuable opportunities for exchange and feedback on the current project and future work.
