Sex trafficking, prostitution, and increased HIV risk among women during and after the 2015 Nepal earthquake

Women might be at increased risk of HIV infection after a disaster situation due to several interlinked environmental and social factors, such as increased sex trafficking and prostitution, in resource-limited settings. However, this information has not been clearly understood. Based on the review of available gray and peer-reviewed evidence, the present debate paper summarizes potential factors for increasing women’s HIV risk during/after two earthquakes that hit Nepal in 2015. Poverty and socio-economic crisis, displacement and reduced social capital, increased rate of sex trafficking and prostitution, and poor access to health care seem to be the factors to increase women’s HIV risk in the earthquake-affected areas of Nepal. There is a lack of essential empirical evidence on environmental and social factors (e.g. increased sex trafficking and prostitution) that are linked with women’s HIV risk in the post-disaster phase. Therefore, the factors and interactions discussed should be further studied potentially in disaster-affected areas so that locally and culturally salient and sustainable relief and reconstruction strategies, which include strategies for preventing HIV risk in post-disaster situations, can be developed.