On the Big Island, behind the postcard images, lies a much darker reality which hits young people hard. Future prospects appear slim for young people, condemned to roll up their sleeves from a very young age in mines, vanilla plantations or the streets of big cities.
According to UNICEF, 23 % of children aged 5 to 17 have an economic activity, often to the detriment of their school career. And among them, some have no choice but to resort to prostitution. A practice that is nevertheless prohibited by Malagasy law, but which takes place in front of everyone, and which certain foreign tourists exploit.
A French NGO against the sexual exploitation of children
However, the situation no longer leaves one indifferent. The phenomenon is now taken seriously by the Malagasy government, which has created an entity specializing in the fight against sex tourism in Madagascar and launched numerous awareness-raising actions in partnership with professionals in the sector and NGOs.
The French NGO Ecpat is one of them. To prevent the sexual exploitation of children in tourist areas, and ultimately eradicate it, in 2016 it launched a program to train or support the government, local authorities, child protection networks, and child protection professionals. tourism and victims on this sensitive subject.
Called “Escale”, the project now tackles the trivialization of minor prostitution. Objective : change mentalities within the population, so that the practice is no longer tolerated. And particularly when it is linked to tourism. As part of this project, professionals are now encouraged to be vigilant and report any suspicious behavior in a hotel environment.
And the project is bearing fruit. Nearly 900 companies in the tourism sector have adopted a code of conduct developed by the ministry. This should soon be integrated into the control procedures of the inspectors of the Service for the fight against tourist scourges in order to put an end to sex tourism in Madagascar.
Good reflexes to adopt
The NGO also addresses tourists directly. With the Malagasy Ministry of Tourism, she has just published the Responsible traveler’s guide. Funded by the French Development Agency (AFD) and Air France, this guide was distributed in many tourist places including tourist offices, in Antananarivo as well as in the coastal and tourist regions of Tuléar, Diego, Mahajanga and Nosy Be .
A publication which is not only aimed at tourists looking for young prey, it indicates to everyone 12 reflexes to adopt when faced with a suspicious situation, or when interacting with children.
A necessary step so that tourists, like locals, stop looking away from this less than idyllic reality.
Download the Responsible traveler’s guide in Madagascar
