Child Abuse

Statistics and rising crime levels clearly indicate that many young people leave home because their family environment became unstable or because there is desperate poverty. They turn to living on the streets with the idealistic expectations of a child, trying to escape the burdens of their family and township life. They do not anticipate the harsh realities that they are faced with on the streets.

Child prostitution in Africa is usually a case of survival sex. Children are often forced to work because of economic circumstances – they have to contribute to the family’s income or provide for themselves.

GLOPEC has realized that child abuse in Africa resulted from the following factors and is therefore focusing on improving those areas:

High unemployment rates
Non-existent social welfare support
Changing parenting patterns
High levels of domestic violence
Low levels of education
High dropout rates at schools
Lack of effective safety and protection services
The breakdown of family structures