Context: Meaning progress, Pragati is an empowerment initiative that seeks to build capacities of women in sex work to respond to challenges that impact their rights, dignity and quality of life. The project puts women in sex work at the centre of the development agenda, empowering her identify factors responsible for her current status and building her capacities to address those factors by enhancing her control over strategic resources.

Pragati is implemented by Swathi Mahila Sangha (SMS) a sex worker collective in partnership with Swasti, a resource centre. The project is financially supported by Karnataka Health Promotion Trust through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Pragati started its operations in April 2005 and is implemented in 4 zones of Bangalore city. It has reached over 17,000 sex workers so far and on an average over 10,000 women in sex work are contacted every month. Over 3000 of them visit clinics for regular checkup and 0.5 million condoms are distributed through 250 condom outlets every month. Over 100 community members have been trained as community leaders; a crisis response team is in place that has responded to over 1500 cases of violence and harassment and around 300 community members have been referred and treated for alcohol de-addiction. Over 2500 women in sex work are members of a micro-finance institution established by women in sex work, for women in sex work. One million rupees in credit and savings have been mobilized since December 2007.

Goal: The improved well being and reduced transmission of HIV and STI among female sex workers.

Purpose: Improve capacities of women in sex work, to protect & respond to key threats that impact their

lives & livelihoods

Strategies:

• -Protect and respond: Dialogue with the community to enable change in behaviour; provide health care services including understanding of reproductive and sexual health rights; distibution of condoms (free distribution and social marketing, including female condoms); positive prevention and support for PLHIV; community action against violence & harassment, including sensitisation of secondary stakeholders and rescue and rehabilitation of those forced into prostitution

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• -Improving quality of life: Ensuring access to social entitlements through networking, linkages and personalised support; awareness and support to take up alcohol de-addiction; support for child welfare and education; access to saving & credit services through the micro-finance initiative and opportunities for diversified & alternative livelihood

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• -Capacity development: Buidling capacities at the individual, group and institutional (Swathi Mahila Sangha) level through training, workshops, conferences, exposure visits, peer learning, experience sharing forums, mentoring, facilitation and shadow leadership.

For a presentation on CD at Pragati:  Rooting for change