Khat in East Africa: taking women into or out of sex work?
Women's drug use is often associated with sex work as a means of raising money for consumption. Similarly, in Kenya and Uganda, journalists, the general public and aid agencies associate female consumption of the stimulant drug, khat (Catha edulis), as pulling women into prostitution. In contrast to Yemen and Ethiopia, these views are expressed by people living in areas where there are no rituals or traditions of female khat consumption. This paper presents data from a study carried out in Kenya and Uganda in 2004 and 2005 that documents that the majority of women engaging in khat chewing are not sex workers. Frequently, however, women who retail khat are often assumed by men to be sexually immoral. The role of women in the retail and wholesale khat trade is examined. The stigma attached to selling khat is linked to the overall situation of independent women in East Africa and the place of commercial sex in urban life.
Beckerleg
Susan
S
Institute of Health, School of Health and Social Studies, University of Warwick, Coventry, UK. susan.beckerleg@warwick.ac.uk
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000351:Africa, Eastern / Q000453:epidemiology; D029754:Catha / Q000009:adverse effects*; D017280:Condoms / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003469:Culture; D004335:Drug and Narcotic Control; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D007899:Leisure Activities / Q000191:economics / Q000523:psychology; D008297:Male; D009014:Morals; D012309:Risk-Taking; D021841:Safe Sex / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011477:Sex Work / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D012747:Sexual Partners / Q000523:psychology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D019966:Substance-Related Disorders / Q000191:economics / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000523:psychology; D016387:Women's Health