HIV positive women in Cambodia, China and India will have the opportunity to achieve economic independence by running small businesses as part of the Women and Wealth Project (WWP).
The project is run by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) Regional HIV and Development Program and Thailand’s Population and Community Development Association (PDA).
As part of WWP, HIV/AIDS groups in the three countries have created businesses such as a garment plant that employs 30 positive women and a beeswax candle factory that employs 4 women.
Beth Benne, RN, is HIV negative, but
the virus has impacted her life. She currently supervises a biannual HIV/AIDS awareness week as
the director of the student health center at Pierce College, a
community commuter school in Woodland Hills, California.
Woman of the Month is supported by exclusive advertising from Gilead.
Overheard in the Women's Forum
"I recently met a guy who is negative. I did tell him about my status and he decided to kiss me anyway (we didn't go further than that). But a day later, he called and said that he actually had a mouth ulcer that time when we kissed and he was very worried. Asked if he can get the virus from me that way. For that moment, I felt so insulted and yet I felt so bad. It was my first time having a contact with a "negative" guy."
