Truck drivers, middlemen and commercial sex workers: AIDS and the mediation of sex in south west Uganda
- PMID: 11397339
- DOI: 10.1080/09540120120044026
Truck drivers, middlemen and commercial sex workers: AIDS and the mediation of sex in south west Uganda
Abstract
Although long distance truck drivers have been implicated in the spread of HIV in Africa, there is a paucity of studies of their sexual cultures. This paper reports on a study of the sexual culture of drivers, mediators and commercial sex workers (CSWs) in a roadside truck stop on the Trans-Africa highway in south west Uganda. Sixty-nine truck drivers, six middlemen and 12 CSWs were interviewed using semi-structured questionnaires. Interviewing truck drivers also entailed participating in the town's nightlife and spending much time in the bars. Truck drivers stop briefly at the truck stop for various reasons: to eat, sleep, have sex and sell goods they are carrying. Middlemen mediate the latter two activities. Middlemen buy goods from the drivers and introduce them to 'suitable' women with whom they can have casual sex. Most drivers have sex when they spend the night at the truck stop, and most make use of the services of the middlemen. The most important reasons why drivers use middlemen are that the latter speak the local languages and, in particular, know the trustworthy and 'safe' (HIV-negative) women. The CSWs use middlemen mainly because they are a guarantee that the driver will pay and they usually ensure that drivers pay well. The mediation system is becoming increasingly professionalized. Most drivers claimed to use condoms during casual sex, and this was confirmed by the CSWs. General use of condoms is encouraging, particularly given the context of a culture generally opposed to condoms. The idea that middlemen can recognize 'safe' women is worrying. However, given their key position, middlemen could form the hub of an opinion leader type intervention focused on drivers and the professional group of sex workers described here, providing condoms, advising about the importance of condom use in all casual sexual encounters, giving information about HIV and STDs, and possibly referring drivers and women to appropriate sources of HIV counselling and testing and STD treatment.
Similar articles
-
Multiple sexual partners and condom use among long-distance truck drivers in Thailand.AIDS Educ Prev. 1996 Dec;8(6):490-8. AIDS Educ Prev. 1996. PMID: 9010509
-
Long distance truck drivers in India: HIV infection and their possible role in disseminating HIV into rural areas.Int J STD AIDS. 1994 Mar-Apr;5(2):137-8. doi: 10.1177/095646249400500212. Int J STD AIDS. 1994. PMID: 8031917
-
Sexual networks in Uganda: casual and commercial sex in a trading town.AIDS Care. 1997 Apr;9(2):199-207. doi: 10.1080/09540129750125217. AIDS Care. 1997. PMID: 9135633
-
[Current status of the female condom in Africa].Sante. 1997 Nov-Dec;7(6):405-15. Sante. 1997. PMID: 9503499 Review. French.
-
A scoping review of the impact of long-distance truck drivers on the spread of COVID-19 infection.Pan Afr Med J. 2021 Jan 12;38:27. doi: 10.11604/pamj.2021.38.27.26691. eCollection 2021. Pan Afr Med J. 2021. PMID: 33777295 Free PMC article. Review.
Cited by
-
Fifty ways to leave your rubber: how men in Mombasa rationalise unsafe sex.Sex Transm Infect. 2004 Dec;80(6):430-4. doi: 10.1136/sti.2004.010421. Sex Transm Infect. 2004. PMID: 15572608 Free PMC article.
-
Spatial distribution of sexual network locations used by long-distance truck drivers along the Northern Corridor highway, Kenya.Int Health. 2023 Nov 3;15(6):734-743. doi: 10.1093/inthealth/ihad021. Int Health. 2023. PMID: 36964695 Free PMC article.
-
Prevalence and risk factors of STDs in rural Haiti: implications for policy and programming in resource-poor settings.Int J STD AIDS. 2003 Dec;14(12):848-53. doi: 10.1258/095646203322556200. Int J STD AIDS. 2003. PMID: 14678595 Free PMC article.
-
"Over here, it's just drugs, women and all the madness": The HIV risk environment of clients of female sex workers in Tijuana, Mexico.Soc Sci Med. 2011 Apr;72(7):1185-92. doi: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2011.02.014. Epub 2011 Mar 3. Soc Sci Med. 2011. PMID: 21414702 Free PMC article.
-
An assessment of fishing communities around Lake Victoria, Uganda, as potential populations for future HIV vaccine efficacy studies: an observational cohort study.BMC Public Health. 2014 Sep 22;14:986. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-14-986. BMC Public Health. 2014. PMID: 25242015 Free PMC article.
MeSH terms
LinkOut - more resources
Full Text Sources
Medical
Research Materials
Miscellaneous