Two brothels closed down in Eastern Region

he New Juabeng Municipal Assembly in collaboration with the Eastern Regional Child Protection Committee, have closed down two brothels in the municipality.

The centers were nightclubs where commercial sex workers including children mostly operated.

Child prostitution has become a major worry to both traditional, Political leaders, and child right activists in the Municipality which has triggered the Child Protection Committee and the Assembly to act after the two centers were identified to be rendering brothel services involving children.

The Eastern regional Director of Department of Children under the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Mr. Anthony Dontoh announced this during a meeting of the 21-member Eastern Regional Child Protection Committee, facilitated and supported by Plan International Ghana.

Mr. Dontoh who also doubles as chairman of the committee, stated that, the committee is working hard to eliminate child prostitution, influx of video and gaming centers, Internet Cafe's that allow Children to watch internet pornography, night clubs that allow Children to exchange sex for money, high school dropout among girls, teenage pregnancies, and child labour.

Meanwhile, four hundred and fourteen (414) teenage girls in Basic Schools in 26 districts of the Eastern were impregnated in the last two academic years in exchange of sex to meet basic necessities which includes Sanitary pads because their parents could not afford as a result of abject poverty, according to the Girl Child Education Unit of the Ghana Education Service.

Out of the total number, 229 got pregnant in 2014/2015 academic year whiles 185 girls were impregnated in 2015/2016 academic year.

In 2015/2016 academic year, only 50 of these pregnant pupils took part in the Basic Education Certificate Examination.