Title: The commercial sexual exploitation of girls and young women in Namibia

Authors: Suzanne LaFont

Addresses: Department of Behavioral Science, Kingsborough Community College, 2001 Oriental Boulevard, Brooklyn, New York 11235, USA

Abstract: The main objective of this article is to examine trends among female Namibian sex workers over time. The current research, conducted in 2013, is an expansion of research conducted in 2006. The questions explored are: Are women beginning sex work at a younger age? Are they sharing their earnings? Are they being forced to share their earnings? And are 'pimps' or third party profiteers, previously thought to be rare in Namibia, emerging as a dynamic in the lives of young female sex workers today? The findings suggest that girls and young women are entering into sex work at younger ages and that a significant number of girls and young women are being sexually exploited and forced to share their earnings. The data presented here identifies a vulnerable population in need of special outreach and targeted programs.

Keywords: sex workers; prostitution; gender; women; Namibia; pimping; sexual exploitation; informal sex work; transactional sex; sex work decriminalisation; commercial exploitation; girls; young women; female exploitation; vulnerable populations.

DOI: 10.1504/IJGSDS.2015.067929

International Journal of Gender Studies in Developing Societies, 2015 Vol.1 No.1, pp.77 - 89

Received: 22 Jan 2014
Accepted: 19 Nov 2014
Published online: 31 Mar 2015 *

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