On my last trip to Uganda, I was asked to speak to the older girls about sexual purity. I felt my heart sink.

Many of you know that my husband, Duncan Hill, started Uganda Orphans Fund in 2002 to rescue orphans and children at risk. On my first trip to Uganda, over ten years ago, I had asked a Ugandan woman named Eva the hard questions about AIDS in Africa. “This is catastrophic! Why don’t people talk about AIDS over here?”

She spoke calmly, explaining that their culture had deep roots in polygamy. In modern times, that translated to promiscuity—almost a male “right.” On top of that, women in Africa are far more dependent on men. “In your country, women are independent,” she said. “If a man puts sexual pressure on a woman, she can say ‘No.’ But here in Africa, if a young woman goes to work and her boss imposes on her—to refuse is the equivalence of anarchy.” In other words, she stands to lose everything. So men get AIDS and expose others, including their wives.

At the time, great efforts to stem the tide were already underway in Uganda. HIV rates had reached epidemic proportions in the 80s, but declined in the 90s due to a government campaign called “ABC”—Abstinence, Be faithful, or Condoms. Reports showed that promoting abstinence and monogamy were most essential in reversing the devastating spread of AIDS.

But cultural changes are not that easy.Continue reading