Local leaders in Madi Okollo District have expressed grave concern over the increasing involvement of teenage girls in commercial sex work. According to the leaders, the majority of those engaged in this illegal activity are young girls who have dropped out of school in search of quick money to support themselves.
Swaib Toko, the Madi Okollo Resident District Commissioner (RDC) and chairperson of the HIV/AIDS Committee explains that teenage prostitution has become a significant security threat, resulting in a rise in new HIV/AIDS infections within the district.
Toko also highlights the proliferation of lodges, guest houses, hotels, and bars in the district as a primary factor driving young girls into prostitution. He further states that the district’s security committee plans to engage lodge owners to implement strict measures against promoting teenage prostitution on their premises.
Some of the areas where prostitution is prevalent include Okollo Town Council, Rhino Camp Town Council, Ayavu Trading Center in Inde Town Council, Ullepi Trading Center in Ullepi Sub County, Pawor Trading Center in Pawor Sub County, and Kamukamu Trading Center in Rigbo Sub County.
Meanwhile, George Ayiba Butele, the Madi Okollo District Education Officer, believes that the perpetrators of this vice are exploiting the vulnerability of teenage girls who have discontinued their education, luring them into prostitution.
Sections 138 and 139 of Uganda’s Penal Code Act criminalize prostitution. Under Section 138, a “prostitute” is defined as a person who “regularly or habitually holds themselves out as available for sexual intercourse or other sexual gratification in exchange for monetary or material gain,” whether in public or elsewhere.
Individuals found guilty under this provision may face imprisonment for up to seven years. Third parties, such as brothel owners, can also be sentenced to up to seven years’ imprisonment for “living wholly or in part on the earnings of prostitution,” as stated in Section 139 of the Penal Code Act.
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