A review of transactional sex for natural resources: Under-researched, overstated, or unique to fishing economies?

Environmental change is projected to decrease the availability of key natural resources. Decreasing availability of resources that support food security and livelihoods for vulnerable populations is hypothesized to increase engagement in transactional sex. Therefore, we systematically examined the peer-reviewed literature to characterize what is known about transactional sex for natural resources, document the natural resources that are exchanged for sex, and identify qualitative trends. Of the 1063 articles returned, 33 were retained for full abstraction. A majority of articles were published after 2005 (93%) and focused on Africa (90%). Two-thirds of articles focused on sex-for-fish exchanges. Reports of transactional sex were also found for other resources, including agricultural land (12%) as well as food, water, and fuel in emergency contexts (12%). Migration and altered resource availability were described as underlying causes of transactional sex. Some studies described an increased risk of sexually transmitted infection, including HIV, as a health consequence of transactional sex. We offer three possible explanations for why the preponderance of previous studies have focused on sex-for-fish, rather than other natural resources, and suggest directions for future research.