A wind of change is sweeping across the capital city not only in the CBD but also on the fringes. In a span of six months, two popular brothels have closed and joints converted into business stalls. The two brothels on River Road had been operating since independence less than 200 metres apart. This has left hundreds of night nurses in the cold.
The latest to close was known for elderly and married hookers who survived on patrons checking in at the joint that had a smoky bar with adjacent rooms for the trade. The section of the building that used to host the brothels is now housing modern business stalls, forcing those who used to earn a living there to find other alternatives.
However, some experts who spoke to The Nairobian say several factors could be contributing to the death sex dens within the city. Among them, they say, is the advent of online platforms where women in the trade are now uploading their profiles and prices for willing clients.
Executive Director of Bar Hostess Empowerment and Support Programme says that the digital sex platforms and emergence of high class brothels away from the heart of Nairobi are some of the factors.
“I remember in one of the brothels, the women were quite elderly and could not match the wind of change and were not comfortable in those places,” she said.
She said the change has a lot to do with business dynamics, young aggressive night nurses and also the economic situation in the country.
“There is also competition from newer smarter brothels and people preferring them to those that existed since independence,” she said.
She said sex trade was also moving to estates in what she described as decentralisation of all sectors among them banks and supermarkets. King’s Condoms Promotion CEO Stanley Ngara, who has been distributing protective sheaths in some joints for years, said at the moment more women are available than before.
He said sex joints had also been hit by the Covid-19 pandemic. “The cash flow is down and social places that used to motivate sexual activities are no longer active,” he said.
He added: “There are so many girls who are available, thus giving those who were in brothels tough competition. At the same time, many people have shifted to outdoor activities like sex in the bush and cars.”