Zimbabwe girls trade sex for food

Growing numbers of children in Zimbabwe are turning to prostitution to survive, the charity Save the Children says.

The aid agency says increasing poverty is leading girls as young as 12 to sell their bodies for as little as a packet of biscuits.

It also claims that the coming football World Cup in neighbouring South Africa could soon make things worse.

Unemployment in Zimbabwe is thought to top 90% and many cannot afford to pay for food, medical care or school fees.

The deputy head teacher of a large school east of Victoria Falls told the BBC that hundreds of her female students are now selling their bodies for whatever they can get.


"It could be books, it could be biscuits, chips, some even just to be given a hug."

There is also evidence that many girls are being targeted by child traffickers, Save the Children's country director Rachel Pounds says.

They are thought to have plans to send young Zimbabwean girls to South Africa to feed the appetite of those attending next year's football World Cup finals.

Source : BBC News