Prostitution of children

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Statue of a young 19th-century prostitute

Prostitution of children or child prostitution is a form of child sexual abuse involving the
commercial sexual exploitation of children in which a child performs the services of
prostitution, for financial benefit. The term normally refers to prostitution by a minor, or
person under the local age of majority. In many countries there are specific laws against child
prostitution which may include people who are older than the local Age of consent.

The form of child prostitution in which people travel to foreign countries for the purposes of
avoiding laws in their country of residence is known as child sex tourism.

A customer may negotiate an exchange directly with a child prostitute in order to receive
sexual gratification, or through an intermediary (pimp) who controls or oversees the
prostitute’s activities for profit. The provision of children for sexual purposes may also be an
object of exchange between adults. Many children are prostituted over the Internet with the
use of webcams to facilitate this abuse, and child pornography may be linked to the
prostitution.

Contents
[hide]

• 1 Definitions
• 2 Terminology
• 3 Causes and context
• 4 Prohibition
• 5 Extent
o 5.1 Asia
o 5.2 South America
o 5.3 North America
o 5.4 Europe
o 5.5 Oceania
• 6 See also

• 7 References

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v·d·e

The Optional protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography to the
Convention on the Rights of the Child states that child prostitution is the practice whereby a
child sells his or her body for sexual activities in return for remuneration or any other form of
consideration. The remuneration or other consideration could be provided to the prostitute or
to another person. The 131 countries who are parties to the Optional Protocol (at May 2009)
undertake to prohibit child prostitution.

The Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention, 1999 (Convention No 182) of the
International Labour Organization (ILO) provides that the "use, procuring or offering of a
child for prostitution" is one of the "worst forms of child labor." This convention, adopted in
1999, provides that countries that had ratified it must eliminate the practice urgently. It enjoys
the fastest pace of ratifications in the ILO's history since 1919.

[edit] Terminology
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Child prostitution is sometimes used to describe the wider concept of commercial sexual
exploitation of children (CSEC). However, child prostitution excludes other identifiable
manifestations of CSEC, such as commercial sexual exploitation through child marriage,
domestic child labor, and the trafficking of children for sexual purposes.

It was the limitations of the term child prostitution that led to the development in the mid-
1990s of the term commercial sexual exploitation of children, or CVE,as a more
encompassing description of specific forms of sexual trade involving children. Nevertheless,
‘child prostitution’ remains in common usage and is indeed the wording embedded in
international instruments of law.

Some believe that the terms child prostitution and child prostitute carry problematic
connotations. They claim this is because these terms, on their own, fail to make it clear that
children are generally not expected to be able to make an informed choice to prostitute
themselves. The act of prostituting a child is sometimes carried out by another party, as stated
in the definition provided by the Special Rapporteur on the sale of children, child prostitution
and child pornography.

[edit] Causes and context

Children are often forced by social structures and individual agents into situations in which
adults take advantage of their vulnerability and sexually exploit and abuse them. Structure
and agency commonly combine to force a child into commercial sex: for example, the
prostitution of a child frequently follows from prior sexual abuse, often in the child's home.[1]

Child prostitution usually takes place in particular environments, such as brothels, bars and
clubs, or homes, or particular streets and areas (usually in socially run down places).
Sometimes it is not organized, but often it is, either on a small scale through individual pimps
or on a larger scale through extensive criminal networks. See organized crime.

Children also engage in prostitution, however, when they exchange sex outside these
environments and in return not only for basic needs such as shelter, food, clothing, or safety,
but also for extra pocket money for desired consumer goods otherwise out of their reach.
There is a subculture of "pocket money prostitution" in many consumer societies, including
the United States, whereby girls and boys under 18 rent out their sexual services for cash or
expensive gifts, or to save up for cars, motorcycles, even college tuition.

These people are prostituted in conditions that appear otherwise perfectly normal. Enjo kosai,
the pay-dating or "sponsored dating" practice reported in Japan, is considered a prime
example of this. However, this latter practice is by definition voluntary rather than via
manipulation.

Living and working conditions for children that are prostitutes are frequently substandard.
Such children are commonly poorly paid or unpaid,[citation needed] kept in unsanitary conditions,
denied access to proper medical care, and constantly watched and kept subservient through
threat of force.[citation needed] These threats may be physical or psychological in nature.[citation needed]

While some sex tourists may make use of child prostitutes, it has been argued that the
majority of their 'clients' are instead the locals. Quoting from the back cover of a recent work:
[2]

The Asian sex trade is often assumed to cater predominantly to foreigners. Sex Slaves turns
that belief on its head to show that while western sex tourists have played a vital part in the
growth of the industry, the primary customers of Asia's indentured sex workers and of its
child prostitutes are overwhelmingly Asians.

[edit] Prohibition
While the legality of adult prostitution varies between different parts of the world, the
prostitution of minors is illegal in most countries. Furthermore, many countries whose
citizens most frequently engage in international child procurement, such as the United States,
[3]
Australia and European countries, enforce worldwide jurisdiction on their nationals
traveling abroad.
As previously mentioned, some literature refers to prostitutes aged at least 13 but less than 18
years of age as 'teenage prostitutes,' but the most common definition of a 'child' is a person
who is under the age of 18. The latter definition is used by the ILO's Worst Forms of Child
Labour Convention, discussed above. Therefore prostitution of children usually assumed to
refer to the prostitution of persons under 18.

The laws of some countries do, however, distinguish between teenage prostitutes and the
prostitution of younger children. For example, the Thai government defines a teenage
prostitute as being between 15 and 18 years old, while the Japanese government defines one
as being between 13 and 18. "Teenage prostitution" is not the only concept distinguising
between less and more serious illegal acts. In the People's Republic of China, all forms of
prostitution are illegal, but having sexual contact with anyone under the age of 14, regardless
of consent, will be charged with a more serious crime than raping an adult.

[edit] Extent
[edit] Asia

In Cambodia, it has been estimated that about a third of all prostitutes are under 18.[4]

The exact number of child-prostitutes in Thailand is not known, but Thailand’s Health
System Research Institute reports that children in prostitution make up 40% of prostitutes in
Thailand.[5]

In India, the federal police say that around 1.2 million children are believed to be involved in
prostitution.[6] A CBI statement said that studies and surveys sponsored by the ministry of
women and child development estimated that about 40% of all India's prostitutes are children.
[6]

An article in the Gulf Times revealed a major sex trade in mostly Nepalese boys who were
lured to India and sold to brothels in Mumbai, Hyderabad, New Delhi, Lucknow and
Gorakhpur. One victim was lured from Nepal at the age of 14, sold into slavery, locked up,
beaten, starved and forcibly circumcised. He reported that he was held in a brothel with 40 to
50 other boys, many of whom were castrated. He escaped and made his way back to Nepal.
Two Non Government Organisations, one that work with homosexuals in Nepal, and one that
works to rescue and rehabilitate trafficked women and children were co-operating to help
these boys.[7]

In Indonesia, UNICEF estimates that 30% of the female prostitutes are below 18.[8]

In Sri Lanka, there are nearly 40,000 child prostitutes, according to UNICEF and ILO.[9]

In the Philippines, there are 60,000 to 100,000 prostituted children, according to UNICEF
and non-governmental organisations.[10]

In Nepal, according to research conducted by the International Labour Organization (ILO) on

440 prostitutes from Kathmandu, approximately 30% of them were found to be children.[11]
In Bangladesh, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) estimated in 2004 that there were 10,000
underage girls used in commercial sexual exploitation in the country, but other estimates
placed the figure as high as 29,000.[12]

There are estimated to be at least 70,000 prostitutes in Vietnam, and 20,000 of these are
children.[13]

In Afghanistan, Bacha Bazi is a form of child prostitution employed by Afghan warlords

where small boys are regularly bought and sold into sexual slavery.

[edit] South America

By 1999, it was reported that in Argentina child prostitution was increasing at an alarming
rate and that the average age was decreasing. The CATW fact book says Argentina is one of
the favored destinations of pedophile sex tourists from Europe and the United States.[14] The
Criminal Code criminalizes the prostitution of minors of eighteen years of age or younger,[15]
but it only sanctions those who “promote or facilitate” prostitution, and not the client who
exploits the minor.[16]

It is estimated that Peru has about 500,000 child prostitutes.[17][18]

In Colombia, it is estimated that there are 35,000 child prostitutes, with between 5,000 and
10,000 of them on the streets of Bogotá.[19][20]

In Chile the estimated number of children involved in some form of prostitution has
decreased. In 1999 UNICEF informed that there were approximately 10,000 children
between the ages of 6 and 18 involved in prostitution, but in 2003, a governmental agency
estimated that there were approximately 3,700 minors.[21]

In Ecuador, a 2002 International Labor Organization report estimated that 5,200 minors were
engaged in prostitution.[22]

In Bolivia, the average age of entry into prostitution is 16.[23]

Brazil is considered to have the worst child sex trafficking record after Thailand.[24]
According to the Protection Project report, various official sources agree that from 250,000 to
500,000 children live as child prostitutes, but other sources in Brazil put the number at up to
2,000,000 children.[24]

[edit] North America

In 2001, Dr. Richard Estes and Dr. Neil Alan Weiner estimated that in the U.S., 162,000 U.S.
homeless youth are child prostitutes (CVE) and that 57,800 children in homes (including
public housing) are estimated to be victims of CVE. They also estimated that 30% of shelter
youth and 70% of homeless youth are victims of CVE in the United States.[25] One third of
street-level prostitutes in the U.S. are under 18 years old while fifty percent of off-street
prostitutes are less than 18 years old.[25] Off-street prostitution includes massage parlors, strip
clubs, and escort services. According to Estes and Weiner, 12 to 14 is the average age of
entry into prostitution for girls under 17 years old in the United States while the average age
of entry into prostitution is between 11 and 13.[25]
A study by Unicef Mexico and the DIF/National System for Integral Family Development
estimated that more than 16,000 children in Mexico were involved in prostitution (in June
2000);[26] a 2004 study by researcher Elena Azaola estimated that some 17,000 children under
the age of 18 are victims of the sex trade in Mexico;[27] the State System of Integral Family
Development (DIF) reported that more than 20,000 minors were victims of child prostitution
in Mexico in 2005, an increase since the year 2000.[28] Out of Mexico City’s 13,000 street
children, 95% have already had at least one sexual encounter with an adult (many of them
through prostitution).[29]

In El Salvador, an NGO study in 1998 indicated that at least 44% of the estimated 1,300
prostitutes in three major red light districts of San Salvador were between the ages of 13 and
18.[30] Among all prostitutes of the country, between 10 and 25 percent of visible prostitutes
are minors, and an estimated 40 percent of the hidden prostitutes who cater to upper-class
clients are believed to be minors, according to a UNICEF study released in 2000.[31]

In Nicaragua, according to Casa Alianza, in the brothels of Managua there are between 1,200
and 1,500 prostituted girls and young women, and almost half of them are under the age of
18.[32] Every night, hundreds of teenage girls line the Masaya Highway commercial corridor
on the capital's south side. Street children engage in prostitution, often to support a drug
habit.

[edit] Europe

1871 photograph of a child prostitute in the United Kingdom

In Ukraine, research has shown that between 30 and 40 percent of prostitutes are between 11
and 18 years.[33]

A 2006 report by World Vision Middle East/Eastern Europe funded by the Canadian
government and supported by six United Nations agencies and the International Organization
for Migration reported that the sexual exploitation of children, child trafficking and sexual
violence towards minors is increasing and that Russia is becoming a new destination for child
sex tourism. The report adds that some studies claim approximately 20 to 25 percent of
Moscow's sex workers are minors.[34]

[edit] Oceania
In Australia, there are an estimated 4000 children involved in prostitution, according to a
study by Child Wise, the Australian arm of the global End Child Prostitution Pornography
And Trafficking group.[35][36]

ECPAT New Zealand and Stop Demand Foundation have cited in a report, “The Nature and
Extent of the Sex Industry in New Zealand,” a police survey of the New Zealand sex
industry, which showed that 210 children under the age of 18 years were identified as selling
sex, with three-quarters being concentrated in one Police District

*** FEATURED ARTICLE ***

Khmer girls' trafficking ordeal
news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4599709.stm
LOOKING FOR CASH - She and her cousin were 16 years old when they decided, against their family's
wishes, to travel to Bangkok. The New Year was approaching, and they wanted some extra cash for
the festive season. A neighbour had told them they could make good money washing dishes in a
restaurant in the Thai capital. They were smuggled across the border in the back of a pick-up truck,
covered by a tarpaulin. When they finally reached the capital, they were taken to an apartment. But
they soon realised something was wrong. One explained: "A businessman arrived at our apartment
and asked us to open our clothes, because he wanted to look at our bodies. He asked if I had a
husband. That's when I knew we weren't going to work in a restaurant.
"At first I refused to have sex with men. Then I was beaten so badly I had to hide my face for a month,
until it healed. Then I was told again I would have to sleep with the customers. I knew if I refused I
would be beaten again. I had no choice but to agree." - htcp

*** ARCHIVES ***

Bur of Democracy, Human Rights & Labor - Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2005
CHILDREN - Child prostitution existed, but child prostitutes often were treated as delinquents rather
than victims.
TRAFFICKING IN PERSONS – The government assisted some underage prostitutes and rescued some
trafficked women and girls during the year.

Human trafficking ring busted

www.gulf-times.com/site/topics/article.asp?cu_no=2&item_no=102933&version=1&template_id=45&parent_id=25
The victims, aged 14 to 17, were promised jobs in Jakarta as domestic workers, but were then flown
to West Kalimantan province on the Indonesian side of Borneo and taken across the border into
Malaysia, sometimes using false travel documents. - htcp

Khmer girls' trafficking ordeal

news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4599709.stm
LOOKING FOR CASH - She and her cousin were 16 years old when they decided, against their family's
wishes, to travel to Bangkok. The New Year was approaching, and they wanted some extra cash for
the festive season. A neighbour had told them they could make good money washing dishes in a
restaurant in the Thai capital. They were smuggled across the border in the back of a pick-up truck,
covered by a tarpaulin. When they finally reached the capital, they were taken to an apartment. But
they soon realised something was wrong. One explained: "A businessman arrived at our apartment
and asked us to open our clothes, because he wanted to look at our bodies. He asked if I had a
husband. That's when I knew we weren't going to work in a restaurant.
"At first I refused to have sex with men. Then I was beaten so badly I had to hide my face for a month,
until it healed. Then I was told again I would have to sleep with the customers. I knew if I refused I
would be beaten again. I had no choice but to agree." - htcp

ECPAT: Fifth Report on implementation of the Agenda for Action [DOC]

www.ecpat.net/eng/Ecpat_inter/publication/other/english/Doc_page/ecpat_5th_a4a_2001_full.doc
At one time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
[B] COUNTRY UPDATES – MALAYSIA – Although Malaysia has been considered a trafficking
destination for women and children from other Southeast Asian countries, evidence has emerged that
Malaysian girls have also been trafficked for sexual purposes.

Child Prostitution In Malaysia Is Worrying

Stringent laws are needed to stem the growing child prostitution in the country, the president of the
International Federation of Women Lawyers (Fida) said Tuesday. "Malaysia has seen an increase in
child prostitution with an average of about 150 to160 local girls detained annually for participation in
immoral activities.

Statement By Ambassador Jasmi Md. Yusoff, Representative Of Malaysia

Malaysia strongly deplores the practice of the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography
and has criminalized these activities in the country. We are very concerned that an increasing number
of girls and boys from development countries are being trafficked to developed countries as well as
between regions and states for their exploitation. The rise and unabated misuse of new information
technologies, including the Internet, for purposes of child prostitution, child pornography and child sex
tourism must be arrested immediately. My delegation would like to see more Internet service
providers comply with existing legislation curtailing these activities.

Sex Industry Assuming Massive Proportions In Southeast Asia

THE CHILD VICTIMS OF PROSTITUTION - In Malaysia, more than half of those "rescued" from various
sex establishments were under 18 years.

Statistical Dimension of Sexual Exploitation of Children

www.indianngos.com/issue/child/sexual/statistics/statistics22.htm
At one time this article had been archived and may possibly still be accessible [here]
There are 43,000 to 142,000 or more prostituted persons in Malaysia. Prostituted persons are mainly
adult women, but there are also male, transvestite and child prostitutes, both girls and boys.

All material used herein reproduced under the fair use exception of 17 USC § 107 for noncommercial, nonprofit, and
educational use. PLEASE RESPECT COPYRIGHTS OF COMPONENT ARTICLES. Cite this webpage as: Patt, Prof. Martin,
"Child Prostitution - Malaysia", http://gvnet.com/childprostitution/Malaysia.htm, [accessed <date>]

the causes of child prostitution

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Prostitution is defined as the act, practice or profession of offering the body for sexual
relations for money. (New Webster’s Dictionary 1995:802). The Encyclopedia Americana
(1997) defined prostitution as “the performance of sexual acts with another person in return
for the payment of a fee.” Child prostitution is therefore, prostitution embarked upon by
children who are below the age of 18 and are supposed to be catered for by their parents. It is
commonly acknowledged that acts of prostitution are performed by women for men
nevertheless occasions arise when the acts are done by men for men. The context of this work
deals particularly with female child prostitution.

UNICEF considers child prostitutes as young girls in sex trade, who are between the age
bracket of 8 and 16. (Jubilee Action Report 1995). In the Nigerian milieu, prostitutes below
the age of 18 are regarded as child prostitutes, since only persons above 18 years of age are
statutorily regarded as adults. Child prostitution is the “sexual exploitation of girls and
teenagers” (Awake February 8, 2003:6). Available data show that approximately 1.5million
children in India, 1 million in Asia, 100,00 children in United States and 500 children in
Latin America are engaged in prostitution (Healy, 1995:35). Awake (February 8,2003:2)
reported,“there were about 300,000 child prostitutes on the streets, in another land where
drug trafficking flourishes”.

According to Jubilee Action report (1995:10), up to 1 million female children join

prostitution each year around the globe. However, the clandestine nature of child prostitution
makes it impossible to calculate the exact number of working prostitutes, nonetheless the
International Labour Organization (ILO) analysis (1993-1994), estimates that between 0.25%
and 1.5% of the total female population are engaged in this trade. Globally, child prostitution
is illegal and it is also regarded as a barbarous crime, yet it persists. Why?

Child prostitution does not just happen. It is caused by a variety of factors some are
perpetrated by the prostitutes themselves, while other factors are external to the prostitutes
themselves. This is really a growing problem in developed world and developing world like
Nigeria (Quintanilla, 1997:20).

CAUSES OF CHILD PROSTITUTON IN Owerri Municipal Council

1. Misery and POVERTY: Poverty is the most common reason why most families sell the
services of their female children to augment their income in order to buy food or clothes and
other necessities of life. (Janssen, 2001:10). The case of child labour is a typical factor that
exposes children to prostitution. The hired female children are sent out to hawk food items on
the streets, motor parks, and mechanic garages thereby exposing them to rapes as well as
sexual harassments.

Barnes H.C. (1959:95) observed that some females take to prostitution due to sheer
destitution. Awake (February 8,2003:5) reported that some street children resort to
prostitution because they see it as their only means of survival. The Awake further related an
experience of a mother of 14-year-old girl who lured her daughter into this ignominious
trade. The woman said about her daughter, “she was beautiful and that men would like her
very much. Besides, she would earn a lot of money.” In the evenings, the woman takes her
daughter to a motel where they make contacts. The mother stays nearby to receive the
payments. Each night, this girl has sex with three or four men.

2. UNEMPLOYMENT:
Unemployment of either the parents or the child results in unreliable source of income
thereby forcing children into prostitution as an alternative means of income to support the
family. Ironically, the International Labour Organization observes that a child’s ability to
earn money is limited. It is estimated that the money earned by the child only contributes to
approximately 10% of the family’s overall income and therefore has minimal effect on the
family’s monetary gain (Dimenstein, 1994:12). Due to high degree of unemployment, the
brothels employ some female children who serve in their drinking spots to promote their
business.

3. HUMANS TRAFFICKING: Human trafficking is another evil leading to child

prostitution. Human trafficking which represent the world’s third largest criminal activity
following only after drug and weapons trafficking is sometimes purported to send teenagers
to other countries to work. These would-be workers who sometimes end up prostitutes
actually “work” and repatriate money to their respective home countries (Awake, February 8,
2003: 5). Many times, hard times hit these fellows as they are deported to come and continue
this profession at home. Some of the female prostitutes come home to take some younger
females to their places either to help them or to make them their servants and at the long run
they get converted to prostitution, which is their boss’ profession.

4. DECEPTION ENCOURAGES PROSTITUTION: Pimps or brothel owners deceive some

parents by paying them money and assuring to enlist their children in their “domestic
services”, which later turns to be prostitution. These brothel owners who are termed the girl’s
“owners” take control of the child’s’ activities. Moreover, these owners do everything
possible to retain these girls who earn money for them to maintain their lavish lifestyle
(Robinson, 2001:50) and (Dimenstein 1994:10). Apart from the pimps, other intermediaries
who benefit from child prostitution do anything possible to see the act continued. Most
females are led into this act of prostitution by their masters. Some of them could be
anaesthetized by their masters in order to have fun with them and when eventually the
woman of the house gets to know about the act she will be thrown out side to continue the act
with other men including the master.

5. DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY ENVIRONMENT PROMOTES PROSTITUTION:

Children of broken homes sleep wherever they see space to do so in the day, and go to the
disco and nightclubs in the night. Ekejiuba I.K. (1996:13) discovered that ill treatment of
children at home might make them to take to the street in order to find solace. Then the end
result may be the hawking of their body to support themselves.

6 POOR EDUCATION: Some children cannot support themselves materially in view of low
educational training they received, so they resort to prostitution as their only profession
(Rodriguez- Garcia, 1999:55). Girl-child Education Initiative In Africa (January 2003:20)
highlights the effect of poor education in the whole of Africa. In connection with poor
education, peer pressure, bad association

The causes and effects of child prostitution in Owerri Municipal Council

and street ganging contribute to child prostitution. Identifiably, a girl may end up as a
prostitute by her association, peer pressure and by running with a street gang (Okebugwu,
1989:25); Adetore, (1974:60); Oti (1984:15); and Daily Times ( May 15,1999:12).
7. AIDS SCARE PROMOTES CHILD PROSTITUTION: The high incidence of sexually
transmitted diseases like AIDS make customers of prostitutes to look for children who are
considered to be of low risk, and most probably virgins (Robinson, 2001:13). Patrons of child
prostitutes are willing to pay a great deal of money to be a girl’s first client. In the streets,
brothels and drinking spots these days a lot of female children are being employed to help
lure more male customers to their spots. Places like Amaram by Tetlow Road and some
places in Onyeche Street in Owerri have a high number of female child prostitutes who are
employed only to facilitate their business. This is because there is the fear that other older
female prostitutes in the same profession could have various STDs.

8. DRUG ABUSE AND ADDICTION ARE PRO-CHILD PROSTITUTION

The influence of drugs can subject a child to prostitution and to certain indignifying acts of
prostitution which she may otherwise never agree to given her sound mind (Lewis 1980:70);
and Udechi (1987:15).

9. REBELLION AND FEELING OF INDEPENDENCE

This is another factor promoting child prostitutions. Some girls are shamelessly bold. What is
more, they feel that the body is theirs thus they should decide what to do with their body.
(Bennet, G and Robert, P. 1985:207).

10. PORNOGRAPHY AGGRAVATES CHILD PROSTITUTION: Pornography also puts

viewers at increased risk for developing sexually deviant tendencies. (Awake July 22,
2003:7). Pornography is identified as promoting “the rape myth” which is a belief that
women cause and enjoy rape. Additionally, the repeated use of pornography interferes with
the ability to enjoy and participate in normal marital intimacy. Dr. Victor Cline, who
specializes in treating sex addiction claims that “deviant sexual acts results” when a viewer
tries to act out the pornography-based fantasies.

11. Incestuous violation and rape in homes as a factor:

Some youths were raped in their own homes, which act changed their outlook in life. Some of
such ones give vent to prostitution. Two other closely related causes of prostitution are
glamour associated with it and insatiable sexual urges in some females. Blag(1976:68)
observed that some prostitutes take to this lifestyle because of their innate desire for glamour
or that they want to maintain a standard of life, which is impossible by ordinary means of
earning, a life reminiscent of Greek hetaerae. On the other hand, Ekejiuba(1996:14)
identified other females, nymphomaniacs, who engage in prostitution for the sake of “fun” or
pleasure they derive from it.

12 SUDDEN EXPOSURE:

Furthermore, illicit love affairs in the presence of children may subject them to early
prostitution. Some parents perform extra marital affairs in the presence of their wards. This
exposes the children to early sex life. The premature death of one or both of the parents has
also been discovered as one of the causes of child prostitution. Because of the chasm created
by such loss, a teenage girl may be fraught with the onerous task of catering for herself and
other family members. More importantly, no one may exist to give stern guideline on her.
One Owerri girl who returned from Kumasi Ghana claimed that her father died when she was
eight years. This demise of his father left her with the responsibility of catering for her
younger siblings and her mother who hails from Kumasi, Ghana. These challenges make her
to dabble into prostitution. Child prostitution is not without its consequences, some of which
are seemingly pardonable, whereas others are taboo at mere mention of them.

High patronage of child prostitutes by wealthy men is another factor that has caused and
sustained child prostitution ( Ekejiuba 1996: 13). Some teenage girls find it difficult to resist
the temptation of prostitution because of huge sum of money they receive there-from. This
accounts for why some IMSU, Alvan and FUTO ladies readily avail themselves for this
business.

Marxist oriented scholars see prostitution as an outgrowth of capitalism. Many of these see
the gradual removal of subsidy from petroleum, which is the main balancer of Nigerian
economy as exposing many persons to difficulty and leading to sexual promiscuity.

Leadership and public awareness

Recommendations

1. Elevate the issue of the commercial sexual exploitation of children at the federal level.

2. Establish regional, state, and/or local task forces to provide continued emphasis on the
commercial sexual exploitation of children; to support action at the local level; and to
improve coordination, service delivery, and information sharing.

3. Consider using townhall meetings to create greater awareness locally.

4. Adopt zero-tolerance prosecution policies and approaches at the federal, state, and local
levels.

5. Focus greater attention on the commercial sexual exploitation of children through existing
entities such as the Federal Agency Task Force on Missing and Exploited Children, the Board
of Pediatrics, the National Transportation Board, and the U.S. Department of Health and
Human Services’ Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration and
Administration for Children and Families.

6. Expand the scope of effective interagency approaches, such as the Internet Crimes Against
Children (ICAC) task forces, to include prostituted children and youth as part of their overall
focus and strategy.

7. Develop partnerships with the media to promote responsible news coverage and
entertainment programming and to develop more effective media campaigns to educate and
inform citizens about prostituted children and youth.

8. Explore innovative efforts to reach youth in their preferred media venues (e.g., hip-hop
stations, teen newspapers and media outlets, schools, the Internet) and consult with children
and survivors to determine in which media to place public education ads to best reach youth.
9. Increase the availability of funds for programs, services, and research relating to the
commercial sexual exploitation of children.