Women and Fish-for-Sex: Transactional Sex, HIV/AIDS and Gender in African Fisheries

Citation:

Béné, Christophe, and Sonja Merten. 2008. “Women and Fish-for-Sex: Transactional Sex, HIV/AIDS and Gender in African Fisheries.” World Development 36 (5): 875–99.

Authors: Christophe Béné, Sonja Merten

Abstract:

This paper analyzes the phenomenon of fish-for-sex in small-scale fisheries and discusses its apparent links to HIV/AIDS and transactional sex practices. The research reveals that fish-for-sex is not an anecdotal phenomenon but a practice increasingly reported in many different developing countries, with the largest number of cases observed in Sub-Saharan African inland fisheries. An overview of the main narratives that attempt to explain the occurrence of FFS practices is presented, along with other discourses and preconceptions, and their limits discussed. The analysis outlines the many different and complex dimensions of fish-for-sex transactions. The paper concludes with a set of recommendations.

 

Keywords: artisanal fisheries, vulnerability, poverty, public health, Africa

Topics: Economies, Economic Inequality, Poverty, Gender, Women, Girls, Gendered Power Relations, Health, HIV/AIDS, Livelihoods, Sexual Livelihoods Regions: Africa

Year: 2008

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