Christine Obbo (born in 1947) is an

Ugandan }), is a landlocked country in East Africa. The country is bordered to the east by Kenya, to the north by South Sudan, to the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, to the south-west by Rwanda, and to the south by Tanzania. The southe ...

socio-cultural anthropologist. She attended school at

Makerere University Makerere University, Kampala (; Mak) is Uganda's largest and oldest institution of higher learning, first established as a technical school in 1922. It became an independent national university in 1970. Today, Makerere University is composed of ni ...

in Uganda, earning her BA and MA there and went on to receive a doctorate at the

University of Wisconsin A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

, with a scholarship from

Rockefeller Foundation The Rockefeller Foundation is an American private foundation and philanthropic medical research and arts funding organization based at 420 Fifth Avenue, New York City. The second-oldest major philanthropic institution in America, after the Carneg ...

. She was then a professor at Wheaton College and then

Wayne State University Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...

, later becoming involved in activities with

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...

, and policy issues.

Career

As an

anthropologist An anthropologist is a person engaged in the practice of anthropology. Anthropology is the study of aspects of humans within past and present societies. Social anthropology, cultural anthropology and philosophical anthropology study the norms and ...

, Obbo focuses on Ugandan

ethnography Ethnography (from Greek ''ethnos'' "folk, people, nation" and ''grapho'' "I write") is a branch of anthropology and the systematic study of individual cultures. Ethnography explores cultural phenomena from the point of view of the subject o ...

. She is the author of the book ''African Women''. Later, she focuses on investigating both social and cultural impacts of African HIV/AIDS crisis as she is interested in examining the links between economic system and sex-gender dynamic in Uganda and how it could slow the spread of HIV in Uganda socially. Many of her work can be dated back to 1980s and Obbo is still active in early 2000. She had contributed her expertise in many areas, including but not limited to participating in various UN-sponsored conferences to highlight the social issues of HIV/AIDS in Uganda to the international community, as well as writing for CODESRIA (Council for the Development of Social Science Research in Africa) publication.

Personal life

In 1975 Obbo married anthropologist

Aidan Southall Aidan Southall (11 September 1920 – 17 May 2009) was a British cultural anthropologist recognised for his fieldwork in urban settings in post-war Africa. Often identified as a pioneer in the study of African cities, Southall is said to have pla ...

who passed away in 2009 at their home in France.

Publications

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References

Living people 1977 births Ugandan women anthropologists Makerere University alumni University of Wisconsin–Madison alumni Wayne State University faculty Wheaton College (Massachusetts) faculty {{Uganda-bio-stub