Street Life and Drug Risk Behaviors Associated with Exchanging Sex Among Male Street Children in Lahore, Pakistan
Received 28 April 2008; accepted 11 September 2008. published online 11 November 2008.
Abstract
Background
Throughout the developing world, children living on urban streets is a byproduct of economic deprivation. In Lahore, Pakistan, there are an estimated 5,000–7,000 street children.
Purpose
The study examined HIV risk behaviors and factors associated with exchanging sex among male street children in Lahore, Pakistan.
Methods
The survey was conducted from August 2003 to March 2004 among 565 registrants, ages 5–19, of Project Smile, a program that aimed to enhance the lives of street children in Lahore. We analyzed the frequency of and correlates of recent (past 3 months) sex exchange for money, drugs, or goods. Multivariate log–binomial regression was used to evaluate the independent effect of covariates on exchange sex.
Results
Approximately 40% of participants reported having exchanged sex during the past 3 months. In multivariate analysis, the factors associated with exchanging sex were living on the street for longer than 48 months (Prevalence Ratio [PR]=1.36, 95% Confidence Interval [CI]: 0.99–1.85), reporting ever having used drugs (PR=1.87, 1.10–3.16), cutting one's self (PR=1.66, 95% CI: 1.26–2.19), and having heard of HIV/AIDS (PR=1.36, 95% CI: 1.03–1.80) after adjusting for demographic and street life variables.
Conclusions
We found high rates of sex exchange among a sample of street children in Lahore, Pakistan. The finding that children who have heard about HIV/AIDS are more likely to exchange sex suggests that children at HIV risk talk about HIV, but accuracy of their conversations is unclear. Street children in Pakistan are in great need of HIV education and safe alternatives for generating income.
Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health Baltimore, Maryland
Address correspondence to: Vivian L. Towe, M.Sc., M.A., Department of Epidemiology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health , 615N. Wolfe Street, E–6534, Baltimore, MD 21205.
This research was supported by a grant from the National Institute of Drug Abuse (DA14702). Project Smile is funded by the European Commission.
ABSTRACT