In most landing sites across Uganda, fishing is the backbone of the local economy. But alongside it thrives another reality: commercial sex work, often driven by poverty, mobility of fishermen and the cash economy that peaks at night. Public health experts have long identified such communities as HIV high-burden areas, where condom use remains inconsistent and access to sexual and reproductive health services is limited.
On February 14, while couples elsewhere celebrated romance, more than 50 women and girls gathered under tents at Makusa for a different kind of Valentine’s experience — one centred on protection, awareness and dignity.
