Table 1.
Sociodemographic and sex work-related characteristics of FSW participants in Karnataka, by survey round
| IBBA survey round | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total | R2 | R3 | ||
| (N=4110) | (n=1953) | (n=2157) | ||
| % | % | % | p | |
| District | ||||
| Belgaum | 28.0 | 25.6 | 30.2 | |
| Bellary | 23.1 | 24.2 | 22.1 | |
| Shimoga | 23.5 | 23.6 | 23.5 | |
| Bangalore Urban | 25.4 | 26.7 | 24.3 | 0.002 |
| Age (years) | ||||
| < 25 | 15.7 | 17.8 | 13.8 | |
| ≥ 25 | 84.3 | 82.2 | 86.2 | <0.001 |
| Literacy | ||||
| Literate | 35.3 | 34.8 | 35.8 | |
| Illiterate | 64.7 | 65.2 | 64.2 | 0.670 |
| Work other than sex work | ||||
| Yes | 64.7 | 62.4 | 66.7 | |
| No | 34.8 | 36.8 | 33.0 | <0.001 |
| Location of sex work practice | ||||
| Practised sex work within home district | 79.5 | 78.4 | 80.6 | |
| Practised sex work outside of home district | 20.5 | 21.6 | 19.4 | 0.002 |
| Usual place of solicitation | ||||
| Home | 27.3 | 37.3 | 18.5 | |
| Street/public place | 44.5 | 44.1 | 44.9 | |
| Brothel | 7.0 | 11.0 | 3.5 | |
| Phone | 21.1 | 7.6 | 33.2 | <0.001 |
| Years practising sex work | ||||
| ≤ 2 | 16.9 | 19.6 | 14.4 | |
| 3 to 4 | 32.1 | 30.3 | 33.7 | |
| ≥ 5 | 51.0 | 50.1 | 51.9 | <0.001 |
| Number of clients in an average week | ||||
| < 10 | 52.2 | 42.4 | 60.9 | |
| ≥ 10 | 47.8 | 57.6 | 39.1 | <0.001 |
| Age at start of sex work (years) | ||||
| ≤ 19 | 21.5 | 23.8 | 19.5 | |
| 20 to 24 | 24.9 | 25.0 | 24.8 | |
| 25 to 29 | 24.2 | 23.7 | 24.6 | |
| 30 to 34 | 17.4 | 16.9 | 17.7 | |
| ≥ 35 | 12.1 | 10.6 | 13.3 | <0.001 |
| First contact with/by CBO or NGO | ||||
| Not aware of CBO/NGO | 3.4 | 4.5 | 2.5 | |
| < 1 year ago | 12.5 | 15.5 | 9.9 | |
| 1 to 2 years ago | 34.3 | 37.7 | 31.3 | |
| 3 to 4 years ago | 31.7 | 33.5 | 30.1 | |
| ≥ 5 years ago | 18.0 | 8.8 | 26.2 | <0.001 |
CBO, community-based organization; FSW, female sex worker; IBBA, integrated behavioural and biological assessment; NGO, non-governmental organization