Women with Dignity work with female, male, transgender, migrant sex workers, also sex workers who are using drugs and with clients all over Tanzania and along the borders.
Sex workers are the main founders of the network hence sex workers are involved on the board of directors, on an advisory board and also part of the implementers as staff. The network is purely led by sex workers, from the advisory board to implementing as key actors.
First is criminalisation of sex work creating poor environment of sex workers to access justice and other basic human rights like access to health services. The government does not consider the need of sex workers as human rights so there is a high incidence of gender-based violence targeting sex workers and police harassment.
Second, there is stigma and discrimination hence there is no recognition of sex worker as work and it has been considered as crime. Sex workers are facing double stigma and discrimination at the community level at the authority level and even self-stigma that results in mental illness and other vulnerability.
WWD’s area of operation is on advocacy, we advocate for the rights of sex workers, conduct capacity building to mentor the group of sex workers to be competent enough to hold the government accountable.
Also doing the movement building as we believe the community voice is the public voice in order to liberate sex workers from all form of oppression and discrimination.