Independent scholar, Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania.
Development Research Group, The World Bank, Washington, DC, United States of America.
PLoS One. 2024 May 31;19(5):e0303993. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0303993. eCollection 2024.
This study investigates how the landscape of sex work in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, evolved in the context of the COVID-19 epidemic. Using a mixed-methods approach, the analysis triangulates data from quantitative and qualitative sources to quantify shifts in income, demand, and client frequency and describe female sex workers' perspectives on their work environment. The COVID-19 restrictions introduced in early 2020 resulted in dramatic decreases in sex work income, leading to extreme financial vulnerability, food insecurity, and challenges in meeting other basic needs such as paying rent. However, in a 2021 follow-up survey, sex workers reported the summer of 2021 as a key turning point, with the demand for sex work rebounding to closer to pre-pandemic levels. Notably, despite the average number of unique weekly clients not yet having fully rebounded, by 2021 the price per client and the total monthly sex work income had returned to pre-pandemic levels. This may potentially be explained by an increased number of repeat clients, which represented a larger proportion of all clients during the COVID-19 pandemic.
本研究调查了坦桑尼亚达累斯萨拉姆的性工作景观在 COVID-19 疫情背景下是如何演变的。研究采用混合方法，从定量和定性来源的数据三角分析，量化收入、需求和客户频率的变化，并描述性工作者对工作环境的看法。2020 年初实施的 COVID-19 限制措施导致性工作收入大幅下降，导致极度的经济脆弱性、粮食不安全以及难以满足其他基本需求，如支付租金。然而，在 2021 年的后续调查中，性工作者报告称 2021 年夏季是一个关键的转折点，性工作的需求回升到接近疫情前的水平。值得注意的是，尽管每周独特客户的平均数量尚未完全恢复，但到 2021 年，每位客户的价格和每月性工作总收入已恢复到疫情前的水平。这可能可以解释为回头客数量的增加，在 COVID-19 大流行期间，回头客在所有客户中占更大比例。
