Girl war survivors vulnerable to HIV, reveals study

A girl survivor of Liberia's civil war who is now taking part in Plan counselling sessions

31 July 2008: Young girls brutalised by war are falling victim to a vicious circle of poverty, prostitution and pregnancy, making them extremely vulnerable to HIV, according to a study to be presented to the International AIDS Conference in Mexico by Plan.

Girls who were abducted by fighting forces or lost parents during conflicts in Sierra Leone and Liberia often have no way of feeding themselves, the study based on interviews of 1,000 children aged 8-18 in 6 West African countries found.

Many girls are left with just 2 options: starve or earn money by selling unprotected sex. Men will often refuse to pay for sex with a condom.

Suicide risk

The study found that two-thirds of war orphans were at high risk of suicide, meaning they had either tried to kill themselves or made a plan to do so. In addition to the pain suffered by individuals, failure to offer girls an alternative to prostitution risks accelerating the spread of HIV in the region.

Alice Behrendt, the report’s author, said: “Governments and organisations working with young people have to confront an ever greater number of children who are vulnerable to HIV and unable to contribute to the development of their countries due to mental health impairments.”

Financial pressure

Almost 50% of the girls interviewed in Liberia had been pregnant outside a stable relationship. This compares to fewer than 3% of girls who had experience of transactional sex in Burkina Faso and Cameroon. Girls who become mothers face additional pressure to earn money as they have to feed both themselves and their children.

In countries which had not recently experienced war, domestic violence was a major factor making girls vulnerable to HIV. More than 80% of interviewed children had suffered physical or verbal abuse and neglect.

Plan action

Plan has set up mobile counselling units for traumatised children who took part in the research. These units provide medical facilities and social assistance, including financial support for school or apprenticeship equipment and fees, as well as traditional healing ceremonies and family mediation.

Download the study that Plan will present to the International AIDS conference, which runs from 3 to 8 August:

HIV and children in difficult circumstances in West Africa
(42kb | 6 pages)

Read more about Plan's work at the International AIDS Conference