Sexual behaviour in the face of risk: the case of bar girls in Malawi's major cities

Abstract

The first case of AIDS in Malawi was diagnosed in 1985. The close association of AIDS with sexual promiscuity led the Ministry of Health to mount a campaign to create awareness of the dangers of promiscuous sex. Surveys so far carried out indicate that about 80 per cent of bar girls carried the HIV virus. This study sought to investigate why young women became bar girls, how much they knew about AIDS, and why they persisted in what is regarded as a high-risk occupation. The study revealed that economic necessity was a major consideration in engaging and persisting in commercial sex. Poverty then may be a major factor in the rapid spread of AIDS in Malawi.