Successful 24th Session of Sex Workers Academy Africa

Source (institute/publication)
ASWA, KESWA

The Sex Workers Academy Africa (SWAA) held its 24th session last month, with 18 activists from three different African countries: Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda. The Academy ran for 7-days from 23rd to 29th November 2020 and involved female, male and transgender sex workers.

Launched in 2014, SWAA is run by the African Sex Workers Alliance (ASWA). SWAA is a learning programme for community empowerment and capacity building, led by and for sex workers. It is implemented by Kenya Sex Workers Alliance (KESWA) in Nairobi, Kenya, on behalf of ASWA (KESWA is also a member of ASWA).

The academy is facilitated by a team of dedicated and passionate trained faculty members who are also sex workers. The SWAA curriculum is drawn from SWIT (Sex Work Implementation Tool) and it has ten modules.

During the welcome dinner, ASWA’s Regional coordinator Grace Kamau remarked that the 7 days of the Academy would be jam-packed with eye-opening thought leadership and capacity building, and vibrant, in-depth debate on sex work movement building in the African Continent. She added that the academy was committed to ensuring that sex work programming best meets sex work goals, partnership and all related sex work development activities.

Activists attending the Academy engaged in a variety of modules including Sex Workers Rights, Engaging with Rights; Art Advocacy; Programme Management; and Organisational Capacity. At the end of the seven days, Peter Njane, Director of Ishtar MSM, concluded the 24th Sex Workers Academy Africa by handing over certificates to graduates.