Adolescent girls engaged in sex work in Bugesera returned to school

The girls who had nicknamed themselves as “Sunika Simbabara” translating to “Push, I feel no pain”, had been victims of sex work in the fast-urbanizing District in the East of Kigali, at least in 30 minutes’ drive.
The concern of the young girls who had dropped out of school to involve in sex work were loudly pointed out in December 2023.
News reports indicated that the girls could be seen in different trading centers in the district, aiming at attracting men.
Residents of Rilima sector in Bugesera District blame the decision of the adolescent girls to start sex work on poverty, domestic violence and carelessness of some parents who are sloppy in taking care of their children.
Since the information came out, Bugesera District Administration pledged to tackle the problem to ensure the girls return to school and to prevent others from dropping out of school and get involved in sex work.
The Mayor of Bugesera District Richard Mutabazi said the district’s intervention targeted parents to return the concerned girls in school and to examine further the problems within families.
Mutabazi noted that many of the girls had parents and the district authorities spoke with the parents to understand the reasons that pushed the girls to get involved in sex work at their tender age.
He said that the district administration had involved parents to ensure the problem gets resolved.
Mutabazi further said that the authorities talked to the landlords who had provided rental houses to the girls and urged them to lock the houses and to stop accommodating girls when they are visibly too young to live alone.
The mayor explained that the situation had contributed to the growing number of cases of unplanned pregnancy and unsafe abortion among adolescent girls.
According to reports, in Rwanda, unsafe abortion poses a grave risk to girls ‘health not only on them but also the wellbeing of families and communities. Research shows that unintended pregnancy often leads to unplanned birth. About 37 % of births in Rwanda each year are unplanned.