Moroto, Uganda | URN | The rising number of teenage girls involved in commercial sex work in Moroto municipality in the Northern Region of Uganda has triggered concern among the authorities.
The Mayor of Moroto municipality, Mohamed Ismail, says that there are many girls as young as 14 years involved in commercial sex work in the municipality.
“Most of these girls are total orphans, others have both parents but they have left their homes for commercial sex work in the municipality, which is so dangerous,” he said.
He appeals to development partners operating in Moroto municipality to come in and do massive sensitization to encourage the girls to return to school.
Mary Nachap, the Moroto Municipal Deputy Mayor says that she is equally disturbed that some mothers are using the young girls to get money to provide for the needs of the family. “These girls come for casual labor in town but they end up becoming commercial sex workers,” he said.
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Nachap says that they will soon start door-to-door operations in the town to arrest those employing teenage children as their house helpers instead of sending them to school.
Simon Korobe, the chairperson of the Moroto boda boda association blames the problem on the high-cost of living.
“It is poverty driving our girls to participate in these dangerous activities. How I wish the government could come up with a program of supporting the girls to go back to school,” he said.
