This study describes the sexual behaviour of men and women in a fishing village on the shores of Lake Victoria in southwest Uganda. The village is near a well known trading town-truckstop on the main trans-Africa highway with a high recorded prevalence of HIV infection. Data were obtained on the daily travel and sexual activities of 26 women and 54 men with particular attention paid to the rate of partner change and the proportion of sexual contacts with people outside the village. During a total of 587 person weeks the men made 1086 trips, mostly returning home the same day. They had a total of 1226 sexual contacts, most of which occurred either in their own village (83%) or a neighbouring fishing village (11%); 17 per cent of sexual contacts were with new partners. Fifteen of the women described themselves as married; 42 per cent of their sexual contacts were casual, paying partners. Of the eleven women who were single, between 80 and 100 per cent of contacts were with paying partners. Most of the women's partners were resident in the village. These data show a very high rate of sexual mixing within the village. Such communities should be targeted in future STD control programs.
PIP: The first cases of AIDS in Uganda were identified in fishing villages on the shores of Lake Victoria in 1985. This paper describes the sexual behavior of men and women in one such village. The village is located 5 kilometers from a well-known trading town on the main transAfrica highway with an HIV prevalence of 40% in 1991, and is home to an adult population of approximately 250. Many residents make frequent trips to the town by foot or bicycle. Data were obtained over a 6-month period on the daily travel and sexual activities of 26 women and 54 men with focus upon the rate of partner change and the proportion of sexual contacts with people outside of the village. Over 587 person-weeks, the men made 1086 trips, mostly returning home the same day. They reported a total of 1226 sexual contacts, 83% of which occurred in their own village and 11% in a neighboring fishing village. 17% of sexual contacts were with new partners. Although 15 of the women reported being married, 42% of their sex contacts were with casual, paying partners. Of the 11 women who were single, 80-100% of contacts were with paying partners. Most of the women's partners were resident in the village. A high rate of sexual mixing therefore exists in the village, but with little contact with people from outside. Such communities should be targeted in future sexually transmitted disease control programs.