The AIDS pandemic is characterised by unique social, biological, economic and geographical factors and endangers not only the individual but also civil society at large. Thus any AIDS vaccine development programme has to lay great emphasis on the involvement of affected communities and civil society.

Partnerships with civil society can help in all aspects of vaccine development and access such as ethics of clinical trials, information dissemination, reliable estimates of demand for an HIV/AIDS vaccine, systems for delivering an HIV/AIDS vaccine to adolescents and adults (who are not the typical targets of immunisation campaigns) and orientation meetings with different stakeholders.

Multiple players like policy planners, medical practitioners, research organisations, other professional bodies, non-government organisations, women's groups and the media come together on the IAVI platform to share common concerns. Such meetings serve a three-pronged purpose -- to orient stakeholders to the science and access issues related to HIV/AIDS vaccines; to solicit their support to speed vaccine development and trials; and to ensure their support in securing universal access to the vaccine as soon as it is available.