Exploring the “Blesser and Blessee” Phenomenon: Young Women, Transactional Sex, and HIV in Rural South Africa

Mampane, Johannes Ntshilagane

doi:10.1177/2158244018806343

Cited by 36 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 31 publications

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“…However, the perception of transactional sex as 'a blessing' undermines public health efforts to prevent HIV and STIs in both rural and urban communities in South Africa [31,[66][67][68]. In a Ghanaian study by Kyilleh et al [69],adolescent women also reported that poverty prompted young women to engage in transactional sex.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Patriarchy and gender power imbalances in South Africa have been recorded as influential in the sexual behaviour of and the relationships that young women forge [26][27][28][29]. It is therefore a concern that the most significant public health threat to curbing HIV infection in South Arica seems to be the romantic relationships and transactional sex that are prevalent between older men and younger women [30,31].…”

Section: (Continued From Previous Page)mentioning

confidence: 99%

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“My partner was not fond of using condoms and I was not on contraception”: understanding adolescent mothers’ perspectives of sexual risk behaviour in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

2020

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Background: Adolescent pregnancy has been a persistent area of interest and concern in the field of public health. The debate about adolescents' sexual risk behaviour has also gained prominence due to findings that have demonstrated that adolescent girls between 15 and 19 years of age give birth to 16 million infants and account for 62% of new HIV infections in the Caribbean and African regions. Health compromising behaviours often develop in adolescence, yet the sexual and reproductive health of adolescent mothers is often marginalised in the healthcare field. The aim of this study was to explore adolescent mothers' understanding of sexual risk behaviour. Methods: The study employed a descriptive qualitative design. To collect the data, four focus group discussions were conducted with adolescent mothers aged 16-19 years. The eighteen adolescent mothers were recruited using purposive sampling technique from a hospital in the Ugu district in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results:The study revealed that decisions to engage in risky sexual behaviour is influenced by peer pressure, drugs and alcohol, sexual experimentation, myths about contraception, the media, poor parental supervision and power gender dynamics, poverty leading to transactional sex, the vulnerability of young girls, and the fear of partner rejection.(Continued on next page)

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: (Continued From Previous Page)mentioning

confidence: 99%

“My partner was not fond of using condoms and I was not on contraception”: understanding adolescent mothers’ perspectives of sexual risk behaviour in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

2020

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“…The threat of contracting HIV is six times higher for adolescent women than it is for adolescent men. 23 In the current study, the participants expressed their concern that pregnant and parenting adolescents were at high risk of contracting HIV and STIs due to unprotected sex. The issue of transactional sex was raised by some participants who mentioned that older men were not only seducing and impregnating younger women, but they were also infecting them with HIV.…”

Section: Discussion 25mentioning

confidence: 90%

Adolescent pregnancy and parenting: Perceptions of healthcare providers

Govender¹,

Naidoo

Taylor

2019

Preprint

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Background Adolescent pregnancy and parenting have attracted much attention as global public health and social concerns. Several studies have reported the prevalence of adverse maternal and child health outcomes due to adolescent pregnancy and it has been highlighted that the care rendered by healthcare providers plays a pivotal role in the health and well-being of pregnant and parenting adolescents. However, a dearth of available literature suggests that the role of healthcare providers as a source of sexual-related and reproductive health information is limited, regarding adolescent women in general. Aim The aim of this study was to explore healthcare providers’ perceptions of adolescent pregnancy and parenting. Methods A descriptive qualitative study was conducted at a district hospital in the Ugu district in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. Healthcare providers rendering care to pregnant and parenting adolescents were recruited from the maternity, antenatal, paediatrics, psychology, dietetics, physiotherapy and social work departments, as well as from the HIV/AIDS, STIs and TB (HAST) programme. The sample comprised 33 healthcare providers who were individually interviewed. The data were analysed using thematic analysis. Results The healthcare providers acknowledged that adolescent pregnancy is a problematic issue in Ugu district. Furthermore, they felt that the postpartum sexual-related and reproductive health of adolescent mothers was not given priority. In the healthcare providers’ view, the problems experienced by pregnant and parenting adolescents were school dropout, financial constraints, breakdown of relationships, abandonment, stigmatisation, parenting and child rearing difficulties, and both physical and mental health problems. Some of the participants were of the opinion that healthcare services were not channelled towards pregnant and parenting adolescents Conclusion The findings will contribute to existing literature on adolescent pregnancy as perceptions of adolescent pregnancy and parenting were elicited from a diverse group of healthcare providers. When appropriately disseminated, the findings will assist relevant healthcare providers, administrators in healthcare institutions, policy makers, and officials of the Department of Health and the Department of Education in South Africa to address the lack of appropriate care for pregnant and parenting adolescents. Our findings also highlight the need for a multidisciplinary approach to the care of pregnant and parenting adolescents.

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“…Those advocating that commercial sex work as an exploitative industry use the term "prostituted women" while those that perceive it as a source of income use the term "sex workers". Social media advocating for young women exchanging sex work with older men in South Africa use the terms "blesser" for a man having sex with young girls for money and gifts and "blessee" for a young girl receiving money and gifts in exchange for sex with an older man (Mampane, 2018).…”

Section: Conceptual Clarity and The South African Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Nowadays commercial sex workers use web-based applications to advertise themselves as well as to show their availability in this fourth industrial revolution era. It is not a secret also that the industry is growing in South Africa with the advent of new terms such as "blesser" and "blessee" (Mampane, 2018), to exonerate the industry and provide biblical connotations to persuade the South African Society to accept commercial sex work as not sinful. As much as there are risks and benefits of commercial sex work, research should also reveal the many factors leading to commercial sex work.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Experiences of Female Commercial Sex Workers in Marabastad, Pretoria

Letlape¹,

Dube²

2019

GJHS

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This paper discusses critically the experiences of the female commercial sex workers in Marabastad, Pretoria in South Africa. Even though commercial sex work is illegal in South Africa, evidence suggests that some women practice it owing to various factors and an investigative analysis of engaging in such an illegal activity in South Africa needs thorough investigation. This paper aims at providing synthesis on the bio-psychosocial benefits and risks of commercial sex work for women involved in it. A qualitative research approach was adopted which purposely interviewed nine women who practised commercial sex work in Marabastad. Due to secrecy in commercial sex work, snowball sampling was also employed to ensure that only women involved in the practice would be accessed to reach data saturation point for the study. Data were analysed thematically to capture the experiences of women. The findings showed that even though women practise commercial sex work in Marabastad, risks are more experienced than the benefits. Unpleasant life circumstances were revealed as the most compelling reasons women practised commercial sex work despite the inevitable bio-psychosocial consequences.  This paper recommends various multi-sectorial approaches to ameliorate the consequences experienced by women practicing commercial sex work in Marabastad in South Africa.

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Exploring the “Blesser and Blessee” Phenomenon: Young Women, Transactional Sex, and HIV in Rural South Africa

Cited by 36 publications

References 31 publications

“My partner was not fond of using condoms and I was not on contraception”: understanding adolescent mothers’ perspectives of sexual risk behaviour in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

“My partner was not fond of using condoms and I was not on contraception”: understanding adolescent mothers’ perspectives of sexual risk behaviour in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa

Adolescent pregnancy and parenting: Perceptions of healthcare providers

Experiences of Female Commercial Sex Workers in Marabastad, Pretoria

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