Authorities worried about spate of child prostitution in Takoradi
Ms Faustina Otabil, Deputy Western Regional Director of the Department of Women and Children on Wednesday, bemoaned the spate of prostitution among girls in the Sekondi/Takoradi metropolis, to the detriment of their education.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) at Takoradi, Ms Otabil said the teenage girls now have clubs and associations with names such as “wetlands” and “Beautiful Queens”, in which such socially unacceptable activity was practiced.
Ms. Otabil said the girls have gang leaders, who allegedly organize abortions for them when pregnancies do occur.
She, however, blamed these inactions on the part of the teenage girls to the lack of social protection and parental neglect, which was gradually creeping into society.
Ms. Otabil said it was the responsibility of every parent, whether rich or poor, to provide the necessities of life to their children, adding that, “Parental negligence is not an excuse”.
She noted that the right to survival and development, to the fullest, was a basic human rights for all children according to Act 560 of the constitution.
Ms. Otabil, therefore, called for the protection of children from all harmful influences, abuse and exploitation, and for their full participation in family cultural and social life.
Source: GNA
I support the Deputy Western Regional Director,Department of Women and Children in condemning the upsurge of prostitution among girls in the Sekondi/Takoradi metropolis.
It is unfortunate that this is happening at a time when a lot of noise is being made about gender balance in enrolment and retention in education.There are two components in the MDGs that touch these areas; access and parity for girls.
The root causes are not difficult to determine.
Easily it could be said that it is poverty.Parental care is another factor. There is a law in this country that at age 4 a child must be at school. The question is are we enforcing this law properly ?
Unless we, as a country tackle the root causes of the issue, it should continue to be problematic.
I have been researching and reading about prostitution in Ghana, a particular interest of mine, though the topic is certainly global and not exclusive to this country. What has become clear is that while the causes of prostitutionare always cited, no matter the sex worker’s age, as due to poverty, influx of oil, mix of international cultures, etc., no where do I read it stated that the true cause of prostitution is that cashed-up white men travel the world and seek sexual favors, for which they’re happy to pay.
Without a demand, there would be no supply. Inherent in all the articles I’ve read, including this one, is a white washing of the primary cause of this exploitation.
Call me jaded, but I think the circles that circulate wealth in this world are sadly tipped, and there is no balance, and the selfish, pruriant-driven male has a field day in CandyLand.. Exploitation takes place on a grand scale and in all sectors, including buying female bodies for a romp, regardless, or because of, the girls’ ages.