When Sex Work and Drug Use Overlap: Considerations for Advocacy and Practice

The report examines the multiple and varied contexts within which drug use (including use of alcohol and non-psychoactive substances, including some hormones and image- and performance-enhancing drugs) and sex work overlap. It provides a snapshot of available evidence on the factors that contribute to vulnerability among people who sell sex and use drugs. Drawing on experience from the harm reduction and sex work communities, the report explores implications for practice, highlighting existing programmes that reach people who sell sex and use drugs around the world, and offering practical suggestions on how programmes can better serve this overlapping population. While this broad and complex area cannot be explored in depth within a document of this length, the report aims to draw attention to this often neglected area, and inform policy and programmatic discussions.