The typology of female sex workers in Dar-es-Salaam: implications to HIV and AIDS interventions targeting female sex workers in Tanzania.

OBJECTIVE: To establish the categories of female sex workers in Dar es Salaam. METHODS: We conducted in depth-interviews with 32 female sex workers (FSWs) in five geographic areas of Dar-es-Salaam known to be the primary residential and working places, three local government leaders in three of the five areas known to have brothels and two NGO representatives working with this population. RESULTS: There are about 14 categories of FSWs with fluid perceived 'boundaries', which could change given factors like the availability of clients, active prostitution control mechanisms, the weather, the female sex worker's need for money and the type of sexual services demanded. CONCLUSIONS: different categories provided by the study participants are only useful in the Dar-es-Salaam context but generalization to other places in Tanzania might not be quite possible. However, using these classifications provides an understanding of how they construct their real world with regard to sex work, experiences, (health) needs and shared characteristics that are important when planning for all aspects of research designs and the implementation of interventions targeting them. The Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MoHSW), through the National AIDS Control Program (NACP), stakeholders and development partners should conduct more research in this area to generate more information that would facilitate lobbying and advocating for repealing colonial-rooted anti-prostitution laws and replacing them with policies aiming at assisting them.

Local terminology for febrile illnesses in Bagamoyo District, Tanzania and its impact on the design of a community-based malaria control programme.

This paper reviews results of several ethnographic studies that have examined the issue of local terminology for malaria in Africa, then presents findings from an on-going study in Bagamoyo District, Tanzania. The study used a mixture of qualitative and quantitative interview methods to examine local perceptions of malaria and malaria treatment practices. Although the local term homa ya malaria or malaria fever appeared on the surface to correspond closely with the biomedical term malaria, significant and often subtle differences were found between the two terms. Of perhaps greatest importance, common consequences of malaria in endemic areas such as cerebral malaria in young children, severe anaemia and malaria in pregnancy were not connected with homa ya malaria by many people. A set of guidelines are described that were used to determine how best to promote acceptance and use of insecticide-impregnated mosquito nets, given these results. It is demonstrated that the position of the term used to denote malaria in the local taxonomy of febrile illnesses has important implications for the design of health education interventions.

Seasonal variation in the perceived risk of malaria: implications for the promotion of insecticide-impregnated bed nets.

Bed nets (mosquito nets), impregnated every 6 months with pyrethroid insecticides, are a simple, low-cost malaria control method well suited to conditions in sub-Saharan Africa. As large seasonal variations in levels of net usage may seriously limit the potential impact of the nets on malaria transmission, a study was conducted on local definitions of seasons, perceptions of seasonal variation in mosquito populations and incidence of febrile illnesses in Bagamoyo District, Tanzania, to aid in the design of a communication strategy for promoting sustained use of the nets. Both the diagnosis and treatment of febrile illnesses are affected by what season people think it is, by what illnesses they think are common in each season, and also by their perceptions of how abundant mosquitoes are. During dry seasons when mosquitoes are scarce and malaria is thought to be unlikely, it will be difficult to attain high rates of net usage. It will be necessary to develop locally-appropriate messages and communication materials that explain how it is possible that malaria can be a threat even when mosquitoes are few. Cultural consensus analysis was found to be a particularly valuable tool for understanding the reasons behind large variations in local perceptions of seasonality.