The workshop was organized under the auspices of an ILO programme initiated in 2004, developing a sectoral approach to HIV/AIDS education sector workplaces, as a complement to the ILO's code of practice HIV/AIDS and the world of work, adopted in 2001. A number of research papers and assessments prepared by international organizations in recent years have highlighted the impact of HIV and AIDS on the education sector workforce in developing countries, especially in sub-Saharan Africa. High prevalence results in morbidity and mortality rates which deprive affected countries of some of their most educated and skilled human resources. In addition, teachers are often not trained or supported to deal with HIV in schools, and the disease has also affected the management capacity of education systems. In 2005, UNESCO joined the ILO in a collaborative project, aimed at the development of an HIV and AIDS workplace policy and related resource materials for use by education staff and stakeholders at national and institutional levels in southern African countries. The workshop in Maputo brought together representatives of government (ministries of labour and education), employer organizations and teacher/educator unions from seven countries to participate in this process, along with representatives of regional and international organizations. The purpose of the workshop was to further refine and validate materials developed for use by constituents of the ILO and UNESCO and other education sector stakeholders at the institution and national levels, and to develop initial strategies to implement workplace policies in the different contexts of the participants' countries. Accordingly, it was expected that by the end of the workshop there should be:an agreed workplace policy; agreed implementation guidelines; an action plan/strategy outline for each country; an outline of a workshop report.