What Is Wrong With Us: The world must be ashamed that childhood has become so dangerous for so many children
We Called Them Our Future, Then Looked Away While Their Present Burned. We speak endlessly of children as "our future," yet millions are being sexually abused, trafficked, forced onto streets, married too young, impregnated as children, pushed into hazardous labour or commercial sexual exploitation, and left to negotiate adult dangers with childhood bodies. UNICEF estimates that more than 370…
The world must confront the harsh reality that childhood has become perilous for countless children worldwide. UNICEF estimates that over 370 million girls and women alive today, approximately one in eight, have experienced sexual assault before reaching adulthood. This figure rises to 650 million, one in five, when non-contact forms of abuse are taken into account.
Furthermore, it is estimated that between 240 million and 310 million boys and men have also faced sexual violence during childhood. These are not isolated incidents confined to conflict zones or impoverished regions; they occur in affluent suburbs and struggling townships alike, often perpetrated by individuals the children know and trust, such as relatives, neighbors, teachers, or family friends.
In sub-Saharan Africa, the statistics are particularly alarming. An estimated 79 million girls and women in the region, more than one in five, have experienced sexual assault before their eighteenth birthday, representing the largest absolute number in any world region. This includes Ghana, where progress has been made in areas such as declining child marriage rates and gender parity in basic education.
However, despite these advancements, around 15 percent of Ghanaian girls aged 15-19 have experienced pregnancy, and nearly nine out of ten children live in multidimensional poverty. Additionally, roughly one in five Ghanaian women aged 20-24 were married before the age of 18.
South Africa's situation is equally concerning. UNICEF reported that in a recent quarter, more than three children were murdered daily, with attempted murder cases increasing by 35.7 percent year-on-year. Statistics South Africa data cited by UNICEF indicate that 58 children are sexually abused daily, with children accounting for roughly 40 percent of reported sexual offenses.
The country's adolescent fertility rate, at approximately 61 births per 1,000 girls aged 15-19, is more than double the average for upper-middle-income countries. These reported cases likely represent only a fraction of the true burden of sexual violence against children.
Human trafficking further exacerbates the problem. The United Nations reports that children represent 38 percent of detected trafficking victims globally in 2022, up from 13 percent in 2004. Among trafficked girls, 60 percent are sexually exploited, while among boys, forced labor, criminality, and begging are common. Children are being bought, transported, and exploited, all while the world debates artificial intelligence and other technological advancements.
The United Nations has set the goal of ending violence against children by 2030. With only four years remaining, it is no longer a question of whether the world loves children but whether our budgets, institutions, families, and justice systems demonstrate that love when children need protection the most. We have become adept at expressing beautiful sentiments about children, but when they return home to violence, sleep on the streets, or become mothers before they have finished being children, our society often remains silent and indifferent.
It is time for humanity to acknowledge the magnitude of this issue and take decisive action to ensure the safety and well-being of our children.
Written by urgent.news from MyJoyOnline Ghana's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
