By Enock Nyankieya, Nairobi
The number of daytime sex workers is growing in the country alarmingly, and even spreading across the border to Ethiopia, traditionally a country such a vice was not present, the National Syndemic Diseases Control Council (NSDCC) has said.
Members of Parliament (MPs) were that in Nyeri and Nairobi, the rising number is among married women, who come to town as early as 8 am after they have dropped their children in school.
“In fact a county like Nyeri, I have had a meeting with the daytime sex workers, and it’s a very difficult group to deal with; because they leave their homes, go to town engage in sex work the whole day, then at 5 PM they go and pick their children from school, and go home,” the NSDCC Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ruth Laibon Masha told the Committee.
The National Assembly Committee on Health, led by its chair, Endebess MP, Dr. Robert Pukose was on a fact finding mission at the Council, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) and the Pharmacy and Poisons Board (PPB). The MPs’ mission was to try and understand the challenges and successes in the three institutions.
However, the legislators were shocked to learn of the emerging problem of day time sex work, which is now expanding fast to include women who don’t necessarily venture out at night.
“In fact a county like Nyeri, I have had a meeting with the daytime sex workers, and it’s a very difficult group to deal with; because they leave their homes, go to town engage in sex work the whole day, then at 5 PM they go and pick their children from school, and go home,” the NSDCC Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Ruth Laibon Masha told the Committee.
She said, most of these women are people’s wives.
And due to this, the Council is confronted with a challenge dealing with them as meeting them becomes difficult.
“It becomes a huge challenge trying to meet them, since it has to happen during the day,” she said.
Sometimes, unlike the other sex workers who venture out at night and go to clubs, this particular group, Dr. Masha pointed out, don’t go to any club.
“Those ones are the most difficult sex workers to deal with, and that’s a huge challenge for the Council, and Nyeri is the biggest problem,” she said, noting that the last time she was in Nyeri, Dr. Masha met about 300 of them, most of them who cite poverty.
“And it was interesting because they even came with their children,” she said.
It is the same case with Nairobi, she said.
“It’s a group that’s growing as a resource basket, Nairobi’s River Road, Nyamakima area and adjacent areas host many day time sex workers.
“I was talking to some of them, and they tell me that they take their children to school in the morning, and when they come out, they go home,” the MPs heard.
The NSDCC is also concerned that sex work has expanded to Ethiopia and mostly brought around by the young girls.
“This is the new generation of young girls who are becoming into sex work, cross the border at Moyale, and venture out into a country that traditionally didn’t have a market for sex work,” she revealed.
Similarly, like in Nyeri and Nairobi, the girls are seen in the morning, but in the evening they have gone back to their homes.
“This has been the biggest challenge because they are mostly operating between 8am to 5pm, and they go home,” Dr. Masha said further, calling on the MPs support, especially in reforming the Constituency AIDS Committee offices, which she said, will be helpful in arresting some of these emerging issues.
