In Nigeria, direct sex work has largely crippled as a result of physical distancing and lockdown measures put in place by the government to halt transmission of the deadly Coronavirus.
Brothels, alongside restaurants, bars and nightclubs which all used to be the hub of bubbly activities have become ghost towns. Though the federal government has eased lockdown in Lagos and Abuja (Lagos, Kano and the FCT has highest share of Covid-19 infections in the country) , giving some businesses the leeway to reopen, for brothels and other nocturnal ventures, business still remains sanctionable due to Covid-19 curfew.
From the very beginning, one of the biggest organisations representing Nigeria’s sex workers sounded the ‘lockdown’ alarm to its members.
Coordinator of the Nigeria Sex Workers Association, Amaka Enemo in a statement she released after President Muhammadu Buhari issued a lockdown order said though sex workers offer “essential services,” they will remain indoors because their services involve “substantial bodily contact.”
“Sex workers also offer essential services. However, there is no way sex workers can do their work without body contact. So, we are staying at home to watch what happens. The government has announced a lockdown and as law-abiding citizens, we will not flout the law.” She noted
Brothels, other red-light districts turn ghost towns in Abuja, Lagos
In Lagos, most of the areas with large concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as lounges, strip clubs were shutdown and deserted.
From Allen Avenue in Ikeja to First Avenue, Festac; Adeniran Ogunsanya in Surulere and several of such places in Lekki – there seems to be heavy compliance and as such Lagos now looks bleak at night without the magical lights and radiance these pleasure spots brings to the state.
Specifically, First Avenue in Festac which is characterised by loud musics and seem to be one of the most preferred sex market in the area was empty.
A resident who identifies himself Obina, said there has been some level of relief in the area as a result of the curfew in Lagos.
This is one of the very few times I have enjoyed this area, before now, this place doesn’t have the outlook of a residential area, with lots of brothels, clubs in this area you should know that the pleasure biz gives an invitation to crime.
“Most of the clients that patronise them cause a lot of nuisance. Loud music and noises troubling our sleep, imaging the impression all these also leaves on some of us who are raising kids in this area; sometimes you wake up to see condoms, pants and bras littering the environment, which are all evidences of some sex trade that occurred on roadsides, let alone other criminal activities like robbery, drug sales etc.” He noted
In Abuja, Ademola Adetokunbo, a more upscale street of restaurants, bars and clubs where ready-to-pick ladies gather on a long stretch waiting for their clients is today empty of such promises. Same is the story in Wuse Zone 4 and some parts of Utako, where you find plenty love gardens thronged with, sex workers, couples and revelers.
At the moment, padlocked gates, gardens with no chair settings and official notices in red, pasted on front doors are common sights that indicate closure of some of the finest lounges, pleasure centres you can find in Abuja.
Survival mechanism: Prostitutes, strippers go virtual, embrace home delivery
But all hope is not lost for some sex workers! Coming to the realisation that the lockdown has temporarily chased them out of business, with most clients staying away from public gatherings in fear of physical contact, some prostitutes have decided to migrate online via several dating apps, where they recruit new clients.
Networking Apps now offer these league of sex workers a new market. Here, they trade online, by sending nudes to their pleasure-starved clients and some even go as far as taking the delivery of pleasure to the doorstep of customers who are willing enough to dare Covid-19 in getting a pleasurable moment – all these can then be paid for through e-wallets and transfers.
Some of these major apps used for the new sex trade include, Badoo, Tinder, Twoo among others.
Kenneth Ejiafor who runs a wine bar in Apo resettlement area in Abuja revealed how most of the sex workers are keeping their heads above water.
His words: “It is really a bad time for us, the government has paused our livelihood. Ever since this whole lockdown started, I have lost money.
Asked about the whereabouts of the ladies who used to flood the area before the lockdown, he replied “Most of the girls who come here to entice our customers have all travelled to different destinations. I am not even sure business will return to normal if they lift the ban.
“Apart from the fact that I have lost some of my major customers, even most of the ladies who come here to make our business a lively one are now getting used to a new life, they are meeting clients on their phones, most of them are on Tinder and Badoo, they see men who invite them to their homes.” Says Ejiafor