Skip to main content

SEX TOURISM IN KENYA



Sex tourism in Kenya: One girl’s story

© UNICEF Kenya/2006/Rohio
A recent UNICEF-backed report on the effect of sex tourism in Kenya finds that exploitation thrives because many in local communities look the other way.
By Pamella Sittoni

A new report conducted by UNICEF and the Government of Kenya finds that thousands of girls in coastal tourist areas are being exploited in the sex-for-cash industry. Here is one girl’s story.

MOMBASA, Kenya, 20 December 2006 – “If my father knew that I do this, he would kill me,” says Annie (not her real name). “But he does not provide enough for me and my daughter, so I have to do this to make some extra cash.”

Annie is from a lower middle-class family in Mtwapa, a coastal township near Mombasa. Kenya. She lives with her parents, who put food on the table and pay rent and other bills. As far as the family is concerned, Annie is an obedient child who is never out of the home beyond the 8 p.m. curfew set by her father.

But what they do not know is that Annie goes out almost daily in search of men. “Most of the men are Kenyans,” she says, adding that they pay her from $3 to $8 for sex.

Occasionally she has had sex with tourists, who pay up to three times more. “But it is not easy to get tourists. I can’t go to the beaches to hunt for tourists because police are always on patrol and they would arrest me,” she notes.

Influenced by peers


Annie is barely fifteen. Her daughter is 11 months old.

Her troubles began when she got pregnant while in Standard Eight. “My parents started treating me like an outcast,” Annie recalls. “If I asked for anything, they would ask me to find the man who gave me the baby to buy whatever I needed. They always reminded me that I had let them down in school.”

Like many other teenagers in Mtwapa, Annie was introduced to sex-for-cash by her peers. “They told me I could earn money easily by simply having sex with men,” she says.

‘I will forget about this life’


But Annie is aware that what she is doing is dangerous. “This is not a good life,” she admits. “Sometimes the men treat me badly. Sometimes they refuse to pay me and chase me away. Sometimes they do terrible things to me which I can’t even describe.

“The most horrible ones are the bouncers, who demand that I have sex with them before they allow me into the club where I could meet the tourists,” she adds.

“My father has said I should go back to school next year and repeat Standard Eight. Once I go back to school, I will forget about this life,” Annie says hopefully.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Four Armed Robbery Suspects Killed In Shootout With Police In Songwe

  “This is Vwawa Bus Stand, where the incident occurred in which armed robbers shot and killed a security guard before fleeing with various items.” Songwe. Four suspected armed robbers have been shot dead following a confrontation with police in Songwe Region after allegedly being involved in a violent raid on a mobile phone and financial services shop in Vwawa town, Mbozi District, in which a security guard was killed. According to a statement issued today, December 30, 2025, by the Songwe Regional Police Commander, Senior Assistant Commissioner of Police (SACP) Augustino Senga, the incident occurred at around 3:30 a.m. The suspects reportedly stormed the shop, owned by businessman Gabriel Msemwa, at the Vwawa main bus stand, killed the guard, William Mwampashi (45), and fled with assorted items. The deceased suspects have been identified as Bruce Mwasenga, Eliuta Mapunda, Abdul Chiba, and Justine, known by a single name. SACP Senga said police immediately launched intensive, inte...
Post a Comment
Read more

JAB Yawasogeza Huduma Waandishi Iringa, Yaomba Ushirikiano Kudhibiti Waandishi Wasioidhinishwa

Iringa. Bodi ya Ithibati ya Waandishi wa Habari (JAB) imeendelea na jitihada za kusogeza huduma zake kwa waandishi wa habari nchini, safari hii ikifika katika Klabu ya Waandishi wa Habari Iringa (Iringa Press Club – IPC), ikiwa ni sehemu ya mkakati wa kuboresha tasnia ya habari na kulinda taaluma ya uandishi wa habari. Akizungumza wakati wa kikao na waandishi wa habari mkoani Iringa, Kaimu Mkurugenzi Mkuu wa Bodi ya Ithibati ya Waandishi wa Habari (JAB), Wakili Patrick Kipangula, amesema lengo la ziara hiyo ni kutoa elimu kuhusu majukumu ya bodi, mchakato wa ithibati pamoja na kusikiliza changamoto zinazowakabili waandishi wa habari ngazi ya mikoa. Wakili Kipangula amesema bado kuna changamoto ya uwepo wa watu wanaojihusisha na shughuli za uandishi wa habari bila kuwa na ithibati halali, hali inayochafua tasnia na kuhatarisha maadili ya kazi hiyo nyeti. “Tunawaomba waandishi wa habari kushirikiana na Bodi kwa kuwafichua watu wanaojitambulisha kama waandishi bila kuwa na ithiba...
Post a Comment
Read more

MUCE IMPLEMENTS SH18.6 BILLION PROJECT IN HONOUR OF FATHER OF THE NATION’S VISION

Iringa. As Tanzania marks 26 years since the passing of the Father of the Nation, Mwalimu Julius Kambarage Nyerere — a passionate advocate for education — Mkwawa University College of Education (MUCE), a constituent college of the University of Dar es Salaam (UDSM), continues to successfully implement the Higher Education for Economic Transformation (HEET) Project worth over Sh18.6 billion. Speaking to journalists in Iringa, MUCE Principal Prof Method Samwel Semiono said the project, implemented by the government through the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology, aims to reform the higher education system so it can directly contribute to the country’s economic transformation. “The five-year project (2021/2022–2025/2026) is funded by the World Bank and focuses on curriculum improvement, infrastructure development, human resource capacity building, inclusive education and gender equality, as well as promoting the use of ICT and digital learning,” explained Prof Semiono. He no...
Post a Comment
Read more