Walvis Bay
It is estimated at least 530 persons – of which more than a half are women – are offering sex in exchange for money at the harbour town of Walvis Bay, with most of them being residents of the town.
This is according to a Southern African Development Community (SADC) report on health vulnerabilities of mobile populations and affected communities at the Port of Walvis Bay. The study was conducted in four countries with seaports, namely South Africa, Mozambique, Tanzania and Namibia, with a focus on Walvis Bay.
The aim of the study is to contribute to the reduction of HIV incidence rates and impacts among migrant and mobile workers, their families and sedentary communities with which they interact in selected harbour communities in SADC.
The findings of the study,
which was conducted in collaboration with the Ministry of Health and Social Services (MOHSS) and the International Organisation for Migration (IOM), were presented to stakeholders at Walvis Bay last week. The study was carried out by Sustainable Development Africa, (Susdaf) and aims to inform policies, strategies and programmes toward responding to health needs of vulnerable people, such as sex workers.
It provides detailed empirical data and in-depth analysis of health vulnerabilities, specifically HIV and AIDS risks and incidence rates amongst sea-going personnel, truck drivers, sex workers and other sedentary populations around ports.
It also aims to strengthen information-sharing networks and partnerships so as to better coordinate the health and HIV response in port settings. Presenting the findings, Randholph Mouton of Susdaf said about 55 percent of sex workers at the town are female and trade sexual services for money with males, mainly foreign. “Twenty percent are male sex workers who sell sex to other males, whilst 15 are transgender and trade with men,” he explained.
According to Mouton, five percent are males who engage in sexual activity with women, while 3 percent are females who sell sex to other females. It was also found 67 percent of sex workers who participated in the study are between the ages of 18 and 34 years old. The study further revealed that sex workers are divided into at least in five categories, namely high-class sex workers who earn up to N$3 000 per transaction. Their services are usually offered in hotels, guest houses, etc, with their clients otfen being foreign seafarers, such as captains, engineers and businessmen. They, in many cases, also pay for the accommodation of the sex workers The middle class sex workers earn about N$600, with their clients being businessman and sometimes truck drivers and lower earning seafarers.
Some of the sex workers are also referred as shebeen ladies and pastime sex workers, who get as little as N$20 or just a beer or small gifts for their services. Local men are their main clients. According to Mouton, it was also found that among male sex workers some started their debut at the tender age of 12, whilst females started as early as 14 years old. Mouton said the study found that financial circumstances are cited as one of the main reasons that many of them started prostituting themselves.
“There are those who dream of finding a rich boyfriend or husband to settle with. Others cited abuse suffered at the hands of family members as a reason they joined the illicit trade, whilst others were forced by parents or guardians to engage in sexual activities,” he said. He said half of the participating sex workers reside in Kuisebmond, followed by Narraville. A select group – dubbed high class sex workers – reside in Meersig suburb in the affluent part of town.