Asia Adult Guide

Reference

Harm-reduction NGO directory

29 sex-worker-led and harm-reduction organisations across the eleven Asian countries this site covers. Listings are reference, not endorsement — these are the organisations that exist, publish in English where they do, and accept walk-in or email contact. For STI/HIV testing referral, the regional reference clinics on the health page are usually the faster route.

Thailand

  • Empower Foundationfounded 1985

    Sex-worker-led organisation. Outreach, education, language classes, English-language publication. Runs the Can Do Bar in Chiang Mai as a worker-owned demonstration model. The longest-running sex-worker NGO in Asia.

  • SWING (Service Workers In Group)founded 2004

    Bangkok-based sex-worker-rights NGO. Outreach in Patpong, Soi Cowboy and Nana Plaza; peer-led HIV/STI education; advocacy on the 1996 Act.

  • Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Centre Anonymous Clinicfounded 1991

    Bangkok. The regional reference clinic for anonymous HIV testing, PrEP and PEP. Not strictly an NGO but the most important reference resource for foreign travellers in the region.

Philippines

  • Buklod Centerfounded 1987

    Olongapo-based women's centre supporting former entertainers from the Subic-era industry; expanded to current Subic and Angeles work.

  • LoveYourselffounded 2011

    Manila-based queer-community HIV organisation with English-language testing, PrEP and PEP referral. Clinics in Pasig and Mandaluyong.

  • TLF Share (The Library Foundation)founded 1994

    Manila. HIV prevention and sex-worker support, with material in English and Tagalog.

Vietnam

  • Care for People International Development (CIDP)

    Targeted HIV-prevention programmes including PrEP for at-risk populations in HCMC and Hanoi.

Indonesia

  • OPSI (Organisasi Perubahan Sosial Indonesia)founded 2009

    National sex-worker-led network. Advocates on the KUHP 2026 changes, runs peer-led HIV-prevention work across multiple provinces.

  • Yayasan Spiritiafounded 1995

    Jakarta. National HIV-positive support and information network; PrEP referral; legal-aid navigation.

  • Yayasan Kerti Praja

    Bali-based HIV-prevention organisation. Outreach in Kuta and Denpasar; English-language support.

Japan

  • SWASH (Sex Work and Sexual Health)founded 1999

    Osaka-based sex-worker-led harm-reduction organisation. Multi-lingual STI/HIV resources; advocacy on the Anti-Prostitution Law; outreach in Tobita and Namba.

  • CRASH JAPAN

    Tokyo. Mental-health and crisis support for sex workers and night-economy workers, with limited English contact pathway.

  • Tokyo English Lifeline (TELL)founded 1973

    English-language crisis line. Useful as a triage point for travellers in distress before reaching specialist services.

Cambodia

  • Cambodia ACTS

    Outreach and HIV-prevention NGO working with sex workers in Phnom Penh and Siem Reap. Trauma-informed harm-reduction model.

  • Chab Dai Coalitionfounded 2005

    Anti-trafficking coalition. Useful reference if you suspect trafficking; not a sex-worker-rights organisation.

  • KHANA

    National HIV/AIDS NGO. Operates outreach clinics, links to PrEP and PEP access for at-risk populations.

South Korea

  • Hanteo Women's Rights Centre (한터여성인권센터)

    Sex-worker advocacy and emergency support. Korean-language primary; some English material.

  • iSHAP (Ivan Stop HIV/AIDS Project)

    Queer-community-led HIV testing, PrEP referral, advocacy. The most English-accessible HIV/STI navigation resource in Korea.

  • Korean Federation for AIDS Action (KFAA)

    Public-health resources and clinic referral. Korean-language primary.

Taiwan

  • COSWAS (Collective of Sex Workers and Supporters)founded 1999

    日日春關懷互助協會. Taipei-based. Asia's longest-running sex-worker-rights organisation. Advocacy on the never-activated 2011 'special zone' framework; peer support; published bilingual material.

  • Persons with HIV/AIDS Rights Advocacy Association of Taiwan (PRAATW)

    Rights-based HIV support; partners with Taiwan CDC's PrEP programme.

Singapore

  • Project Xfounded 2008

    Sex-worker advocacy organisation. Outreach, peer support, English-language publication. Provides legal-aid navigation for sex workers detained under the Women's Charter framework.

  • Action for AIDS (AfA)founded 1988

    HIV testing, PrEP support, peer counselling. Anonymous testing clinic at Kelantan Lane operates alongside the DSC Clinic.

  • AWAREfounded 1985

    Women's rights organisation. Helpline for gender-based violence; legal-aid referral. Not sex-worker-specific but a useful triage point.

Malaysia

  • PT Foundation (Pink Triangle)founded 1987

    Kuala Lumpur and Penang. HIV/STI testing, PrEP, PEP, peer support. The principal HIV NGO in Malaysia with English-language services.

  • Malaysian AIDS Council (MAC)founded 1992

    National umbrella body for HIV-prevention organisations. Useful navigation point.

Hong Kong

  • Zi Teng (紫藤)founded 1996

    Sex-worker-rights NGO. Outreach, advocacy, peer support. Multi-lingual material. Long-standing partnership with the Department of Health on STI prevention.

  • AIDS Concernfounded 1990

    Hong Kong's longest-running HIV NGO. PrEP and PEP referral; anonymous testing; English-language services.

  • JJJ Association

    Action for sex-worker rights in Hong Kong. Smaller than Zi Teng but provides complementary outreach.

What these organisations do, in general

Sex-worker-led organisations and harm-reduction NGOs in Asia operate in variable legal environments. In countries where sex work is criminalised (most of this region), the organisations work openly only because they frame their activity as HIV prevention or women's health, both of which carry separate legal cover under public-health statutes. This framing is real — they do all of those things — but it is also a necessary legal structure given the underlying criminalisation.

The organisations are generally able to:

  • Offer or refer anonymous HIV/STI testing.
  • Navigate PrEP and PEP access in jurisdictions where access is uneven.
  • Provide peer-led harm-reduction information and crisis support.
  • Connect you to English-speaking legal aid if you have been detained.
  • Document trafficking concerns to the appropriate enforcement channel.

They typically cannot: refer you to specific venues, recommend workers, run interference with police, or vouch for the legality of anything. Asking will mostly result in a polite redirection to one of the things in the previous list.