Alan Whiteside

Alan Whiteside born in Nairobi, Kenya on 18 March 1956) is an internationally respected academic, researcher and professor at the University of KwaZulu Natal. He is well-known for his innovative work in the field of HIV and AIDS. He is widely published and a sought-after speaker at international conferences and workshops.

Achievements

Whiteside obtained a BA (Hons) degree in 1978, and an MA (Development Economics) in 1980, from the School of Development Studies at the University of East Anglia. His D.Econ is from the University of Natal (now University of KwaZulu-Natal) in 2003. Whiteside joined the University as a Research Fellow in 1983, and in 1998 founded the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division(HEARD). He holds a Chair at the University of KwaZulu-Natal where he is Executive Director of HEARD. He has written many peer reviewed articles, and has authored several books and numerous papers relating to HIV and AIDS. Of particular importance was his 2003 paper, (with fellow academic Alex de Waal), ‘New variant famine: AIDS and the food crisis in southern Africa’, in The Lancet. Among his books are the popular ‘AIDS the Challenge for South Africa’ (with Clem Sunter, 2000), and influential academic volumes such as ‘HIV/AIDS: A Very Short Introduction’ , (Oxford University Press, 2008). Whiteside’s work has encompassed lecturing, mentorship and training. He developed the successful ‘Planning for HIV/AIDS’ training workshop for the Overseas Development Group at the University of East Anglia. He continues to mentor and supervise many students, academics and researchers in the field. He has worked with many international donors philanthropies and the corporate sector.

Career

Whiteside started his career as a freelance journalist and teacher in Mbabane, Swaziland before joining the Botswana Ministry of Finance and Development Planning as an Overseas Development Institute Fellow and a Planning Officer/Economist in 1980. He was a Research Fellow, Senior Research Felllow and Associate Professor at the Economic Research Unit at the University of Natal, from 1983 to 1997. Whiteside was an Associate and Director for Capricorn Africa Economic Associates, in Mbabane, Swaziland between 1988 and 1998. In 1998 he founded the Health Economics and HIV/AIDS Research Division (HEARD) and he was subsequently promoted to Professor. He is currently also a Senior Research Fellow at the Department for International Development(DFID).

Public and Professional Service

Whiteside contributes to international policy through engagement with governments, the UN system and donors. He is on the International AIDS Vaccine Initiative's Policy Advisory Committee, SIDA/Norad Regional AIDS Team Reference Group, and International AIDS Society Governing Council (he is the Treasurer).

He is a member of the Waterford Kamhlaba (a United World College) Governing Council and the Young Heroes Board in Swaziland, and a Trustee of the Waterford School Trust and a Patron of the Temba Trust.

Whiteside is a member of the Academy of Science of South Africa

Between 2003 and 2006 he was appointed by Kofi Annan to the Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa and is Treasurer of the International AIDS Society Governing Council

Whiteside serves on the editorial boards of several journals, including:

• Editorial Board of the African Journal of AIDS Research
• International Advisory Editorial Board of Development Policy Review
• Editorial Board of Globalisation and Health
• Editorial Board of the Journal of the International AIDS Society

External links

• University of KwaZulu-Natal
• Health Economics and HIV and AIDS Research(HEARD)
• Academy of Science of South Africa
• Young Heroes
• UN Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa
• International AIDS Society

References

• De Waal A, Whiteside A. New variant famine: AIDS and food crisis in southern Africa. Lancet, 2003, 362(9391): 1234-1237.
• Whiteside A and Sunter C (2000), 'AIDS: The Challenge for South Africa', Human & Rousseau Tafelberg Publishers
• AIDS in the Twenty-First Century: Disease and Globalisation (co-authored with Tony Barnett), Palgrave, second edition 2006
• Academy of Science of South Africa
• Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa
• International AIDS Society
• NISC South Africa
• Wiley Online Library
• Globalization and Health
• Journal of International AIDS Society