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Sexual exploitation

Child exploitation refers to the use of children for someone else’s advantage, gratification or profit often resulting in unjust, cruel and harmful treatment of the child. These activities are to the detriment of the child’s physical or mental health, education, moral or social-emotional development. It covers situations of manipulation, misuse, abuse, victimization, oppression or ill-treatment.

There are two main forms of child exploitation that are recognised:

Sexual exploitation: the abuse of a position of vulnerability, differential power, or trust for sexual purposes; this includes profiting monetarily, socially or politically from the exploitation of another as well as personal sexual gratification.
Examples: Child prostitution, trafficking of children for sexual abuse and exploitation, child pornography, sexual slavery.

Economic exploitation of a child: the use of the child in work or other activities for the benefit of others. This includes, but is not limited to, child labour. Economic exploitation implies the idea of a certain gain or profit through the production, distribution and consumption of goods and services. This material interest has an impact on the economy of a certain unit, be it the State, the community or the family.
Examples: Child domestic work, child soldiers and the recruitment and involvement of children in armed conflict, child bondage, the use of children from criminal activities including the sale and distribution of narcotics, the involvement of children in any harmful or hazardous work.

Documents (298)

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  1. Responding to Children and Adolescents Who Have Been Sexually Abused: WHO clinical guidelines

    A study from 2011 estimates that 18% of girls and 8% of boys worldwide have experienced sexual abuse. This constitutes a major public health problem. Health providers, in many cases, are the first line of response for victims of sexual violence. It is cru

    Publication year: 2017 Publisher(s): WHO, World Health Organization Author(s): Amin, Avni | Reijnders, Megin | Carai, Susanne | Garcia-Moreno, Claudia

  2. Stori bilong Mi:15 Years of Poro Sapot

    The Poro Sapot Project, funded by the Australian Government, is a sexual and reproductive health (SRH) project that has worked with key populations in Papua New Guinea for over 15 years. The project has been far-reaching, operating in NCD, Eastern Highlan

    Publication year: 2017 Publisher(s): Save the Children

  3. Terminology Guidelines for the Protection of Children from Sexual Exploitation and Sexual Abuse

    In order to make communication with and between children, parents, governmental officials, professionals and volunteers working with or for children as effective and respectful as possible, ECPAT established an Interagency Working Group for the drafting o

    Publication year: 2016 Publisher(s): ECPAT International Author(s): Greijer, Susanna | Doek, Jaap

  4. Adolescent Boys and Young Men: Engaging them as supporters of gender equality and health and understanding their vulnerabilities

    Produced by UNFPA and Promundo, this report highlights the importance of engaging adolescent boys and young men in sexual and reproductive health and rights and in gender equality. It reviews current research on boys’ and young men’s specific risks and re

    Publication year: 2016 Publisher(s): UNFPA, United Nations Population Fund | Promundo Author(s): Kato-Wallace, Jane | Barker, Gary | Sharafi, Leyla | Mora, Luis | Laur ...

  5. Our Home, Safe Home

    The Safe Home project started by providing residential care support to daughters of sex workers, but over the years the objective has shifted to identify community based care solutions for those children. The project is located in Daulatdia Union of Goalu

    Publication year: 2015 Publisher(s): Save the Children Bangladesh Author(s): Mahmud, Map

  6. Mellan Stolarna, Episode 9, Stopp Min Kropp

    This episode of the podcast “Mellan Stolarna” deals with the issue of sexual assault of children. Because it is a taboo subject, many decide not to talk about it. Many who children who experienced sexual assault say, “nobody asked me.” Psychologists at Sa

    Publication year: 2015 Publisher(s): Save the Children Sweden

  7. Raising Understanding among Children and Young People on the Optional Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography (OPSC)

    The Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Violence against Children has launched the child friendly publication 'Raising understanding among children and young people on the Optional Protocol to the Convention of the Rights of the Child on th

    Publication year: 2013 Publisher(s): Office of the UN Special Representative of the Secretary General on Violence against Children

  8. Learning about children in urban slums: A rapid ethnographic study in two urban slums in Mombasa of community based child protection mechanisms and their linkage with the Kenyan National Child Protection System

    This 2013 report presents findings from a rapid ethnographic study about community-based child protection processes and mechanisms in two urban slums in Mombasa. It is the first in a series of reports from Kenya by the Inter-Agency Learning Initiative on

    Publication year: 2013 Publisher(s): Child Resilience Alliance Author(s): Kostelny, Kathleen | Wessells, Michael | Chabeda-Barthe, Jemaiyo | Ondoro, Ken

  9. Examining neglected elements in combatting sexual exploitation of children

    ECPAT International has published its latest journal (ECPAT Journal Series No. 7), which examines neglected elements in combating the sexual exploitation of children. These include: understanding demand for the commercial sexual exploitation of children;

    Publication year: 2013 Publisher(s): ECPAT International Author(s): Capaldi, Mark | Rittenhouse, Rebecca | Smith, Sephra | Smith, Alexandra

  10. "I've Never Experienced Happiness": Child Marriage in Malawi

    With this report, Human Rights Watch investigates child marriage in Malawi. It describes factors contributing to child marriage, the severe consequences of child marriage, the risks that girls face when they resist these marriages, and the abuses they fre

    Publication year: 2014 Author(s): Odhiambo, Agnes

  11. A Case Study Exploring the Relationship Between Mobile Phone Acquisition and Use and Adolescent Girls in Freetown

    This study seeks to provide a platform of information-rich, qualitative data exploring the sexual behaviours of teenage girls in relation to mobile phone acquisition and use. The study objective was to gain an understanding of these behaviours in the city

    Publication year: 2014 Publisher(s): Save the Children | National Secretariat for Reducing Teenage Pregnancy in Si ... Author(s): Lai, Krystle

  12. Situation Assessment on Care and Protection Needs of Children of Sex Workers and Children Affected by HIV/AIDS

    The objective of this study was to generate a clear understanding of the care and protection needs of two extremely vulnerable groups of children, children of sex workers (ChSW’s) and children infected/affected by HIV/AIDS. An additional objective was to

    Publication year: 2014 Publisher(s): Save the Children Bangladesh

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