MOTIVATION AND CHALLENGES OF COMMERCIAL SEX WORKERS IN TAMALE METROPOLIS

Abstract

There is high influx of commercial sex workers in the Tamale metropolis and these are mostly involved young girls and women. This study aims at examining the motivation and challenges of the commercial sex workers. The study is purely qualitative and the main tools for data collection for the study were interview guide, tape recorder and observation. The study purposively selected 50 respondents at the point of saturation in the commercial Business District of the Metropolis where they operate. The key findings of the study with respect to motivation were lack of parental care (8%), peer group influence (36%) and financial gains (56%). The study further revealed that majority of the commercial sex workers were migrants from Nigeria. The study also revealed some challenges the commercial sex worker face in the trade, these includes; among others stigmatization (22%) , rape (5%), The findings also did include coping strategies commercial sex workers adopts in dealing with the challenges they are confronted with in their daily operations. Based on the findings, a number of recommendations were made. A call on the exiting of many of the commercial sex workers, who wish to stop the work, was passionately made, in the light of the revelations which suggested that commercial sex work was inherently harmful. To conclude, commercial sex work is inherently risky given the widespread reported incidence of violent attacks, stigmatization, and rape in the course of providing services to their clients.