-Caveat Lector- Tanzania: Sex Workers Swarm Refugee Camps, Says UNDP Inter Press Service 16-JUN-99 DAR ES SALAAM, (Jun. 16) IPS - A new study by the U.N. Development Program (UNDP) shows an increase in the number of commercial sex workers in refugee camps in Tanzania. Hundreds of women from rural and urban Tanzania are streaming into refugee camps in western Kigoma, a province on the border with Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to practice commercial sex. The camps host more than 70,000 refugees from Burundi and the DRC. "Women craving for wealth are driven by the huge salaries paid to workers of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and other international and local Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) working in the camps," says the study, made available to IPS. "The big salaries paid to UNHCR and NGOs workers have stirred an influx of women dreaming to become rich over night through commercial sex," says the study, conducted by a team of UNDP officials. The trade has attracted women of all social classes, from bar maids, housewives to clerks who turn into hookers at night to supplement their meager incomes, in a country where the minimum wage of 30,000 shillings is hardly enough to feed a family of four. One US Dollar is equal to 1,260 Tanzania shillings. The influx has sparked fears about the spread of AIDs in the refugee camps. Kigoma has been ravaged by the acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS) since the first case of the disease was diagnosed in the East African country in 1983. As of January this year, the Lake Tanganyika province had 2,287 cumulative hospital reported cases of AIDS, according to the UNDP survey. The study shows that during the day Kigoma's fishing, mining and commercial centres conduct normal trading activities "but become hot spots for commercial sex at night." "Interaction of Kigoma people with refugees and the migration of youths from rural to urban centres has fuelled the vulnerability of people to HIV/AIDS infection as guest houses are mostly used for commercial sex," says Elly Ndyetabura, a UNDP program officer. The booming sex industry has its roots on grinding poverty -- up to 50 percent of Tanzania's 32 million population live below the poverty line. The situation has further been compounded by the fact that thousands of youths, unable to obtain jobs in the tight labor market, dodge economic hardships in the rural areas and flock to urban centres hoping to lead better lives. While in the city, they turn to crime and prostitution in order to earn a living. "The uncontrollable rural-urban movement of youths is not only a headache to economic planners but also an obstacle to health-care delivery, particularly the struggle to contain the spread of HIV/AIDS infection in a country with a crippling eight-billion-US-dollar foreign debt," says Ndyetabura. His colleague, Walter Mazzuki, a UNDP program officer, says moral decay and illiteracy have also contributed to the devastating effects of HIV/AIDS infection in Kigoma as girls begin practicing sex at the tender age of 13 or 14 years. He says the practice has resulted into a sharp increase in the number of diagnosed AIDS cases in the age group 15 for women and between 25 and 34 for men. "Sex at a tender age has contributed to increased school drops-outs among girls due to pregnancies and an increasing number of deliveries outside marriages," he explains. Kigoma provincial medical officer, Godfrey Mbaruku, says poor coordination and a lack of commitment by policy makers and government officials have hampered the fight to contain the spread of HIV/AIDS in the region. "Knowledge and understanding of HIV/AIDS is very limited among community members and the leaders at all levels," he says. Tanzania, which hosts up to 800,000 refugees from neighboring countries, has 1.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ================================= Robert F. Tatman [EMAIL PROTECTED] [EMAIL PROTECTED] Remove "nospam" from the address to reply. NOTICE: In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. 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