Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 May 13;22(1):965.
doi: 10.1186/s12889-022-13387-3.

Beaten but not down! Exploring resilience among female sex workers (FSWs) in Nairobi, Kenya

Rhoda Wanjiru  1 , Emily Nyariki  2 , Hellen Babu  2 , Ibrahim Lwingi  2 , Jennifer Liku  2 , Zaina Jama  2 , Mary Kung'u  2 , Polly Ngurukiri  2 ; Maisha Fiti Study Champions; Chrispo Nyamweya  2 , Pooja Shah  3 , Monica Okumu  2 , Helen Weiss  3   4 , Rupert Kaul  5 , Tara S Beattie  3 , Joshua Kimani #  2 , Janet Seeley #  3
Collaborators, Affiliations

Beaten but not down! Exploring resilience among female sex workers (FSWs) in Nairobi, Kenya

Rhoda Wanjiru et al. BMC Public Health. .

Abstract

Background: In Kenya sex work is illegal and those engaged in the trade are stigmatized and marginalized. We explored how female sex workers in Nairobi, Kenya, utilize different resources to navigate the negative consequences of the work they do.

Methods: Qualitative data were collected in October 2019 from 40 FSWs who were randomly sampled from 1003 women enrolled in the Maisha Fiti study, a 3-year longitudinal mixed-methods study exploring the relationship between HIV risk and violence and mental health. All interviews were audio-recorded, transcribed and translated. Data were thematically coded and analyzed using Nvivo 12.

Results: Participants' age range was 18-45 years. Before entry into sex work, all but one had at least one child. Providing for the children was expressed as the main reason the women joined sex work. All the women grew up in adverse circumstances such as poor financial backgrounds and some reported sexual and physical abuse as children. They also continued to experience adversity in their adulthood including intimate partner violence as well as violence at the workplace. All the participants were noted to have utilised the resources they have to build resilience and cope with these adversities while remaining hopeful for the future. Motherhood was mentioned by most as the reason they have remained resilient. Coming together in groups and engaging with HIV prevention and treatment services were noted as important factors too in building resilience.

Conclusion: Despite the adverse experiences throughout the lives of FSWs, resilience was a key theme that emerged from this study. A holistic approach is needed in addressing the health needs of female sex workers. Encouraging FSWs to come together and advocating together for their needs is a key resource from which resilience and forbearance can grow. Upstream prevention through strengthening of education systems and supporting girls to stay in school and complete their secondary and/or tertiary education would help them gain training and skills, providing them with options for income generation during their adult lives.

Keywords: FSW; Kenya (East Africa); Resilience; Sex work; Stigma; Violence.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

Figures

Fig. 1
Fig. 1
Bronfenbrenner’s ecological systems theory adapted for female sex workers [13]
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Scorgie F, Chersich MF, Ntaganira I, Gerbase A, Lule F, Lo Y-R. Socio-demographic characteristics and behavioral risk factors of female sex workers in sub-saharan africa: a systematic review. AIDS Behav. 2012;16(4):920–933. doi: 10.1007/s10461-011-9985-z. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Cwikel JG, Lazer T, Press F, Lazer S. Sexually transmissible infections among illegal female sex workers in Israel. Sex Health. 2006;3(4):301–303. doi: 10.1071/SH06048. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Baral S, Beyrer C, Muessig K, Poteat T, Wirtz AL, Decker MR, Sherman SG, Kerrigan D. Burden of HIV among female sex workers in low-income and middle-income countries: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Lancet Infect Dis. 2012;12(7):538–549. doi: 10.1016/S1473-3099(12)70066-X. - DOI - PubMed
    1. National AIDS and STI Control Programme (NASCOP). KENPHIA 2018 Report. Nairobi: NASCOP; 2020. https://www.health.go.ke/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/KENPHIA-2018-PREL-RE....
    1. Platt L, Grenfell P, Meiksin R, Elmes J, Sherman SG, Sanders T, Mwangi P, Crago A-L. Associations between sex work laws and sex workers’ health: A systematic review and meta-analysis of quantitative and qualitative studies. PLoS Med. 2018;15(12):e1002680. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.1002680. - DOI - PMC - PubMed